The Bet
by Zephon75
Summary: Penny agrees to a bet but things happen that she doesn't expect
1. Chapter 1

Penny was with her girlfriends in a popular club having great time drinking and dancing, the only down side was she was constantly being hit on, although it was nice getting all the attention no to mention free drinks, she hadn't had to buy one all night. She was not in the mood for getting herself a new guy or a one night stand which is what most these guys where probably looking for.

Her friend Cheryl who she had been staying with saw Penny reject yet another hot guy wondering what was going on she decided to ask.

"Hey Penny are you okay?"

Penny just looked at her and smiled" i'm fine why do you ask?"

"Well all night you've been turning guys down what's got into you?"

Penny frowned" Nothing i'm just not interested in just a hook up that's all and that's all they're looking for"

By this point the other girls had joined them" what's going on?" ask Sally

Cheryl turns to her" Penny has been rejecting guys who've been hitting on her all night, saying they're only after one thing and she ain't giving it them"

After hearing this Sally spoke up" Penny you don't know that maybe they just want to dance with you or actually wanted to date you?"

Penny just scoffed" Oh please none of them asked about me just kept going on about how great i looked and using awful pick up lines"

"you know you're allowed to start dating again" said Cheryl

Penny nodded" I know but i don't think a club is the best place to meet a guy anymore that's all"

"I think you're just scared, after what happened with Kurt and your worried that you will get hurt again"

Penny was getting alittle annoyed with the questioning" Look if i wanted to date again I would, i could get any guy i want to ask me out,but i don't want to at the moment"

"Really?" asked Cheryl" you could get any guy you want to ask you out?" Cheryl started smiling

Penny saw her smile and got suspicious," yes any guy, why are you smiling?"

"Because i think we should put it to a test, i bet you can't get any guy to ask you out"

Penny just laughed" Of course i can ,here point out a guy and i can garuantee i can get him too ask me on a date.

Cheryl just smirked" Oh I have some guys in mind but they're not here"

"Doesn't matter i'll still be able to get them to ask me out" Penny said defiantly.

"We'll see about that, are you willing to make a bet on this?" said Cheryl

"I don't know what do you propose?"

"If you can get one of the guys i'm thinking of to ask you out, we'll buy you nice pair of shoes. oh you have to say yes and actually go on a date with them."

Penny's eyes lit up at the thought of getting some new shoes because there was no way she was going to lose this bet, i mean go on a date with a guy to get some new shoes how could she possibly turn that down. But she had to know what her forfeit was if she lost" What do i do if i lose?"

"you'll have to go out on a date with a guy of our choosing"

Penny thought about it for a moment, before quickly agreeing expecting to win this bet easily.

"Deal i'll get one of them to ask me out and then you have to buy me some new shoes" she said the last part quite exitedily.

"Don't forget you have to say yes and go on an actual date with him and we'll want to know what you did on the date aswell "said Sally.

Penny nodded" I know so can you tell me anything about these guys?"

Cheryl smirked again" No but you'll need to change shifts with Emma in order to see them they only come on Tuesdays at 6"

Penny looked over at Emma" Is that okay with you? "Emma was giggling knowing full well who these guys Cheryl was referring to where, then nodded" of course Penny"

The night continued on as before, with a difference Penny was imaging what sort of shoes they'll have to buy her when she wins.

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 **A/N: Thank you for reading this, If you love it or hate let me know, also if it is worth pursuing and if something like this has been done before**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Thank you to everyone who reviewed my first chapter and for wanting me continue this story so here it is the second chapter I hope you like it.**

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After waking up the next morning after her night out with the girls, she instantly regretted agreeing to Cheryl's bet because all the confidence she had whilst out had left her also Cheryl seemed to pleased with herself. That wasn't a good sign plus it seemed that Emma knew who these guys where but neither would tell her anything about them ,she wondered if this was a elaborate set up to get her to start dating again.

So here she was at work doing the Tuesday late shift for Emma so she could meet these guys and get one of them to ask her out, she still knew nothing about them she had asked where they at least into women. Cheryl's response didn't fill her with confidence, apparently one definitely was as he had hit on every waittress who he'd seen, the others they weren't sure about but assumed they where.

Penny was in the staff room having a minute when Cheryl came in grinning" There here" almost jumping up and down on the spot with excitement.

With a sigh Penny got up and went out to see her prospective date, she didn't immediately spot them " Cheryl where are they I thought you said they where here" Penny still looking round trying to spot them.

Cheryl was still grinning "oh they're here alright" Penny just frowned and continued to scan the tables, when her eyes fell on a group of four guys at a table, any confidence she had left was now gone. There where four guys at a table and at first glance she guessed where nerds she doubted they'd ever been on a date, heck she doubted they'd even talked to a woman before, she turned to Cheryl and glared at her.

"Seriously those guys"

Cheryl just shrugged while still smiling" What you said you could get any guy to ask you out why not one of those"

Penny huffed" Fine It might be harder than I thought but i'll still be able to get one of them to ask me out" with that made her way over to the table hearing Cheryl wish her luck. As she walked over she could only see to of the guys fronts the others had there backs to her, one was kind of cute with his natural dark skin, the other not so much with his beetles haircut and what looked like a Dickie.

As she approached the table she paused taking a breathe before announcing herself" Hi I'm Penny i'll be your waitress, can I start you off with some drinks?"

One of the two who had his back to her before turned and looked at her incredulously" I'm sorry you are not our waitress Emma is , every Tuesday at 6pm we come here and are served by Emma I don't know who you are or if you followed Cheesecake Factory protocol when handling food"

Penny just stood there open mouthed at what she'd just heard, well she thought that's one down, she then heard one of the others speak it was beatles hair cut

"Sheldon be nice, Enchante, mademoiselle. I'm Howard Wolowitz, Caltech Department of Applied Physics. You maybe familiar with some of my work. It's currently orbiting Jupiter's largest moon taking high-resolution digital photographs".

Penny just looked at him with a blank expression before turning to the rest" Okay do you guys no what you want or do you need a few minutes?". wanting to get away from the creepy guy who was called Howard she didn't give them time to answer "A few minutes it is"

She was just about to walk away when she heard Howard say something that she didn't understand making her turn back around "I'm sorry?

Howard spoke up again" Haven't you ever been told how beautiful you are in flawless Russian?".

"No I haven't"

"Get used to it"

"Yeah, I probably won't"

"You should it's a sentiment I can express in six languages"

It was the one she hadn't seen yet who spoke up" Howard save it for your blog" He looked at her and Penny was surprised he was really cute with his black rimmed glasses and dark curly hair" Can we have three diet cokes and a lemonade please"

Penny couldn't help herself from smiling at him" Sure i'll be right back" with that she left the table, the ones called Sheldon and Howard where clearly out and to be honest it didn't really matter about the dark skinned guy was like either. Because the cute guy with glasses was her intended target all she had to do was get him to ask her out then she would have new pair of shoes for her collection.

She returned with there drinks" Okay here are your diet cokes and lemonade , so whos having what?"

It was the cute guy again who answered "The cokes are for me Howard and Raj and the lemonade is for Sheldon" nodding to each person as he said it"

Penny put the drinks in front of each of them when she saw him look at her she smiled at him, which made him blush and look away' _wow he's adorable_ ' she thought still smiling.

taking her tray back to the bar and returning to the table she pulled out her notepad" So are you guys ready to order?

Howard answered first"What do you recommend for someone with a man-sized appetite from a morning of weight-training and cardio-funk?"

"A Shower" Penny answered feeling quite nauseated.

Howard looked dejected"I'll take the heart-smart platter".

Penny watched the one called Raj whisper in Howard's ear" Raj would like a meat lovers pizza with no meat"

Penny turned to The cute guy" Is he okay?"

It was Sheldon who spoke "Don't take it personally he can't talk to women"

Penny looked confused ,until cute guy answered" He has selective mutism, and can only talk to women he's related too"

"He can't talk to attractive women or in your case a cheesecake-scented goddess" Howard said whilst leering at her.

Penny was getting a little annoyed with him now, through gritted teeth" Howard please stop doing that"

"All right can we dispense with the pointless chit chat i'd like to order my meal" Sheldon said

"Okay what would you like?"

"I would like a barbecue bacon cheeseburger, barbecue sauce, bacon and cheese on the side, and can you watch the food preparation to insure no one touches my food"

Penny just stared at him' _was he being serious_ 'she thought "No"

"Leonard I don't like this new waitress I want our regular waitress, she makes sure no one touches my food"

"Sheldon no one will touch your food you'll be fine, can I have a quesadilla with soy cheese please"

 _'So cute guys name is Leonard '_ Flashing him a smile "Of course, i'll be back with your meals soon" Penny gave Leonard another smile before heading off to the kitchen and placing there orders.

After placing there orders she noticed Cheryl walk up to her with a huge grin on her face "So Penny have any of them asked you out yet?"

"No and stopped looking so pleased with yourself this wasn't a fair bet"

"Of course it was you told us you could get any guy to ask you out, well they're guys so get one of them to ask you out"

"I will just you watch" Penny said before walking away, she needed to think, how was she going to get one of them to ask her out , well how was she going to get Leonard to ask her out. The others where definitely out, Sheldon was annoying, Howard was a creep although he'd probably be the one she'd have the easiest time getting to ask her out. I mean we could go for a just a coffee that would count as a date, then she could win the bet and get her new shoes, nope whilst she wanted to win there was no chance she would do that. Raj was unable to talk to her so wouldn't be able to ask her out, but she had noticed that he leered at her just like Howard so she wondered if he could talk was he just like him. Leonard was definitely the one but she still had no answer because she doubted flirting with would even get his attention, deciding that she'll just have drop hints to him aswell as flirt and see if he picks up on them.

Satisfied with her plan she made her way back to the guys table hoping that it'll work

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 **A/N: Thank you for reading this chapter the next will be up tomorrow as it was originally one chapter but I decided to split it in two I hope that was okay, as always please review and let me know what you think.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed my previous chapter, I hope you enjoy this one.**

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Penny was leaning against the bar things weren't working out as she had planned everytime she went over to the table she would talk directly to Leonard smiling and flirting with him and giving him little looks. But nothing was happening she had mentioned that she was single and had dropped quite a few hints that she would happily go out with someone if they just asked winking at him to let him know what she meant. But unfortunately all he would do was smile at her and say how she probably goes on dates all the time. She saw Howard going to the restroom, and decided that to win this bet she was going to have to cheat a little, waiting for him to come out, when he did she intersepted him

"Hey could you do me a favour?"

Howard gave her a creepy smile "Of course I knew you couldn't resist the Wolowitz charm you where just wanting to get me alone so you could ask me out"

Penny scrunched up her face" Ew no I want you get your friend to ask me out"

Howard smile fell" Which of my friends do you want me to get to ask you out? and what's in it for me?"

"I want you to get Leonard to ask me out"

"I don't know if I can he doesn't have my charisma and womanising skills , he didn't even notice you flirting with him"

"I know can you help me please?"

"What's in it for me If I do?"

"Okay if you can get him to ask me out i'll get a waitress friend of mine to go on a date with you"

Howard interests peaked "Really what's she like?"

"Does it matter i'll get her to go on a date with you isn't that enough"

"Fine i'll see what I can do"

Penny was relieved he would help "Thanks" walking back to the bar she saw Howard sit back down and start talking to Leonard.

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"Hey Leonard what do you think of the waitress do you think I should ask her out?"

"Really Howard there's no way she would go out with you or any of us"

"Are you sure i'm pretty sure she was dropping hints that she'd like one of us to ask her out"

Raj took the bait" Dude if she was it was probably for Leonard did you see how she would only ask him how things where and she kept smiling at him and i'm pretty sure she was flirting with him"

"What no she wasn't"

"Dude she totally was she even told you she was single and she hasn't been on a date in a while and would go out with a guy if they just asked her, she even winked at you after saying it"

Leonard was a little surprised ' _was she doing what they say and I just didn't notice'_ he was brought out of his thoughts by Penny

"Did you guys enjoy your meal?"

"My meal was exceptable although I could of done without your incessant need to come over to our table disturbing our conversation trying to engage Leonard with idle chit chat. By the way that was quite rude of you to only talk to him and not me I have far more interesting things to say than he does although you are only a waitress and would never be able to understand anything I said".

"Gee and you wonder why she didn't speak to you" Leonard said sarcastically, looking at Penny "The meal, was excellent as was the service" giving her a smile

This caused Penny to smile back at him and even blush a little "Well you're very welcome Leonard"

"My meal was amazing, but not as amazing as you" Howard said giving her a wink.

Penny just pulled her face" Yeah thanks"

"Penny could we have the check please"

"Of course Leonard i'll be right back" smiling at him one last time before she left the table, but her smile disappeared once her back was to him he hadn't asked her out and she was running out of time.

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When Penny left there table Howard turned to Leonard "Okay Leonard if you don't ask her out I will"

"What why would I ask her out ? anyway she will probably say no and she will definitely say no to you"

"Come on what have you got to lose besides she might say yes and it seems like she likes you" _'Please ask her out I really want to get a date with one her waitress friends, I wonder which one it'll be?'_ thought Howard.

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Cheryl made her way over to Penny who was busy getting the bill for the guys" So did one of them ask you out?"

Penny sighed and shook her head" No Leonard didn't ask me out"

Well you've still got some time so you never know" Cheryl said while grinning

Penny glared at her she knew Cheryl was enjoying watching her fail way too much, but there was something she needed to know" If I can't get him to ask me out who is this guy you expect me to go on a date with?"

Cheryl's smile turned mischievous" Oh you've already met him"

Penny was both confused and a little worried " Really when? and who is he?".

Cheryl started grinning from ear to ear" Howard".

Penny scrunched up her face in disgust" Ew no way am I going on a date with Howard he's way to creepy".

"Well a bets a bet, we told you it would be someone of our choosing, did you think it was going to be some tall buff hot guy?".

Penny sighed" I suppose not but I didn't expect it to be someone like that either".

"Well it is so suck it up, if you don't wanna go on a date with him, then you know what to do, get the guy you want to ask you out" still grinning Cheryl walked away, as Penny made her way back to the guys table with there bill.

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Leonard was lost in his thoughts' _Was Penny flirting with me? i really am not sure although she did seem to only want to talk to me and she kept smiling at me when I look her way, should I ask her out? but what if she says no i'll be so embarrassed, I don't know what to do'_.he was brought out of his train of thought by the return of Penny.

"He you go guys remember to tip your waitress", she said flashing a smile at Leonard' _There it was again the smile she was only giving to him'._

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Penny watched as the guys got up to leave, she watched as soon as the other three where heading towards the entrance Leonard Put what look like $20 with there bill. He looked up and saw Penny watching him she gave him a smile but this time it was her work smile, he smiled back and gave her a little wave before leaving. Her smile dropped as soon as he left she went over to collect there bill she opened it up and found his extra money was double the original tip left. This brought a smile to her face even though she knew now that she had lost the bet and would have to suffer a date with creepy Howard. She was disappointed that Leonard hadn't asked her out because she thought they could of had a nice time together and of course she would of won the bet and gotten her new shoes.

She took there bill back to the cashier pocketing her tips, then went back to clear there table, after which she went and stood by the bar not feeling in a good mood knowing she had to go out with Howard.

Cheryl came over with what was becoming a annoying grin to Penny" So I take by your expression he didn't ask you?"

Penny sighed "No he didn't I can't believe I couldn't get him to ask me out".

"Well I ju" Cheryl's grin disappeared and Penny could see her looking at something behind her curious as to what it was, she turned around and went wide eyed with surprise, Leonard was back in and making his way over to her, Penny couldn't help the natural smile that came to her just by seeing him.

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Leonard had made a snap decision after getting in his car he decided he was going to back in and ask Penny on a date, so he got back out much to Sheldon's annoyance and headed back in. He saw her at bar, she had her back to him and was talking to one of the other waitresses who was grinning but when she saw him she stopped grinning.A little curious as to why, but when Penny turned round and smiled at him, he was more bothered about holding it together long enough to ask her out, hoping against hope he wouldn't embarrass himself.

Penny couldn't believe he had come back and she could feel the butterflies in her stomach building in anticipation of what he had come back in for and was clearly something to do with her.

When Leonard got to Penny she was stood up in front of him and it was then he noticed they where about the same height, her maybe slightly taller than him and he was able to look her straight in those what he now noticed beautiful green eyes.

Her smiles hadn't left her face the entire time" Hey Leonard what brings you back to the Cheesecake Factory so soon?".

Leonard nervously fidgeted with his hands as he braced himself for what he was about to do" There is something I want to ask to ask you"

Even when nervous Penny thought Leonard was still adorable" What is it?"

Okay here it goes" I was wondering if you're not too busy if you'd be interested in going out with me sometime?"

Penny couldn't believe he had plucked up the courage to ask her out, she was ecstatic and she couldn't help the huge smile she was now had" I loved to Leonard"

Leonard looked at her in complete surprise "Yo... You will?"

Still smiling brightly "Of course I will, here" ripping a piece of paper from her notepad" This is my phone number, give me a call and we'll arrange something"

Leonard was still a little stunned, he took the piece of paper from her which she'd written her number on" You sure about this?" still not completely believing it.

She laughed still with that amazing smile showing "Yes Leonard i'm sure"

Finally excepting this was real he nodded "Okay i'll call you and we can arrange something, bye Penny"

Before he could walk away she pulled him into a hug when she let him she grinned "Bye Leonard call me soon okay?"

Leonard nodded "Okay" then left still not fully grasping that she had agreed to go out with him, now however he had to figure out where to take her.

Penny watched Leonard leave before turning back to a slightly shocked looking Cheryl" Well looks like you're going to have to buy me some new shoes" Penny said grinning before walking over to one of her tables wondering when Leonard will call.

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 **A/N: I hope you liked this chapter, please let me know what you think and any suggestions as to where Leonard should take her are welcome.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Well here it is the next chapter in this story, i hope you like it, and thank you to everyone who reviewed my previous chapter.**

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Leonard was pacing around in his room nervously fidgeting with his hands glancing at his phone on his bed, trying to will him self to pick it up and call Penny, it took another hour before he finally did it.

He dialed her number listening to it ring a few times before she picked up" Hello"

"Hel...Hello is this Penny"

"Yeah, who is this?"

"It's Leonard, from the cheesecake factory"

"Oh hey Leonard, i'm glad you called, i've been waiting to hear from you"

"You have?"

"Of course where supposed to be going out sometime and you haven't asked or told me when yet"

"Oh right, yeah sorry, that's why i'm calling i was wondering when you are free?"

"Well lets see i can go out with you this Friday if you like?!"

"Yes Friday's good what time should i meet you and where?"

"You can pick me up at seven from where i'm staying i'll text you the address"

"Okay great"

"Great"

"Great i guess i'll see you Friday at seven then"

"Yes well until Friday at seven"

"Friday at seven, okay bye"

"Bye"

"Bye" hanging up Leonard flopped down on his bed finding that short conversation extremely exhausting, he had just shut his eyes when his phone beeped signalling a incoming message, he quickly opened seeing it from Penny with the address for where to pick her up from.

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Penny came out of Cheryl's bathroom dressed in a tight pair of jeans and a pink flowered top, Cheryl looked up at her .

"Penny is that what your wearing?"

Penny looked down at herself as if somethings was wrong " Why what's wrong with it?"

"Well when you usually go out on a date you dress well more you know sexy"

"Yeah well that was for Kurt he always wanted me dressed like that, besides this is just a date to win the bet nothing more".

"Well i thought you would you know put a bit more effort in your look, he might be a nerd but he's still a guy".

"Well i think i look cute dressed like this and it's fine for a first date".

Cheryl holding up her hands" If you say so".

"I do, what times is it anyway?"

Before Cheryl could answer there was a knock on the door. " I'm guessing it's time for your date" she answered grinning.

Penny checked herself one last time, wondering why she was so nervous it was just a date to win a bet nothing more, taking a breath before opening the door to see Leonard stood there.

When the door opened and Penny stood there Leonard was lost as to what to say, he still couldn't get over how beautiful she was and was still a little bit in shock that she had agreed to go on a date with him, he smiled finally finding his voice " Hi"

Penny smiled at Leonard he looked so nervous just like at the restaurant, but now with him dressed up he was not just cute but actually quite handsome."Hi"

Leonard smiled at her "You look very nice" before looking down at the ground.

Penny was surprised that Leonard saying she looked very nice made her blush, it made a change being told she looked very nice instead of the usual hot or sexy.

Leonard glanced up at her" You ready to go?"

Penny nodded" Yeah just got to get my coat and purse" she smiled retreating into the apartment to retrieve them, seeing Cheryl grin at her and then give her a thumbs up, Penny wondering why. Making her way back to the door" Okay Leonard i'm ready to go", turning to shut the door " See you later Cheryl" seeing Cheryl still grinning" Enjoy your date you two".

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Leonard opened his passenger door for Penny,then waited for her to get in before proceeding to close the door for aswell, getting a huge smile from her in the process the journey to the restaurant was quiet neither knowing what to to say. Luckily it didn't take long, when they arrived and Penny saw the restaurant they where going to was Angelo's she couldn't help but grin. She was very excited she loves Italian and had always wanted to come here but Kurt would never take her. Penny watched as Leonard made his way round to passenger door opening and holding out his hand for her, she happily took it "Thank you , you are such a gentleman".

Leonard smiled shyly "You're welcome". as they made there way towards the restaurant ,Penny linked her arm through Leonard's , she was happy that the evening was off to a good start.

They made the way into the restaurant Leonard going over to give his name then they where told they would have to wait a few minutes before there table was ready. They decided to sit at at the bar and Leonard got them some drinks. Again they fell into a silence like the car but this time Leonard decided to break the silence.

"So Penny,how was work?"

"Well you know, it's the Cheesecake Factory, people order cheesecake and i bring it to them"

"So you kind of act as like a carbohydrate delivery system?"

"Yeah, call it whatever you want, i get minimum wage"

"Oh"

"Yeah"

Before they could continue they where told there table was ready and where escorted to it, there table was in the far corner near the window due to the restaurant position it looked out over the beach and Penny wished she was walking along it, deciding she wanted to do it after there meal hoping Leonard would agree to it.

After browsing the menu she chose something that was light and not to expensive, she didn't want to make Leonard pay to much for there meal, she looked over at Leonard and saw him looking intently at the menu. She smiled, she couldn't believe how handsome he looked she was happy that he had got dressed up for there date. He looked quite different now, not like he was when she first met him at the Cheesecake Factory. After they both decided what they wanted and gave there orders to the waiter, Penny deciding not to order any desert as she wanted to go for a walk on the beach before it gets to late.

As they waited for there meals Leonard plucked up the courage to talk to her" So Penny tell me about you?"

"Me? Okay." Penny took a moment to think of what to tell Leonard" I'm a Sagittarius, which probably tells you way more than you need to know."

Leonard looked confused "Sagittarius wouldn't have been my first guess"

"Oh, yeah, a lot of people think i'm water sign."still seeing his confused look she carried on anyway "Okay, let's see, what else? Oh, i'm a vegetarian, No, except for fish, and the occasional steak, I love steak".

"Well that's interesting, anything else?"

"Well as you know i work at The Cheesecake Factory".

"I would love to try cheesecake, but i'm lactose intolerant, so i can't eat it, i still think it's a good idea though".

She wondered for a moment why he told her that before continuing"Anyways, I'm also writing a screenplay. It's about this sensitive girl who comes to LA, from Lincoln, Nebraska to be an actress and winds up waitress at The Cheesecake Factory.

"So is it based on your life?"

"No, I'm from Omaha.

"Well if that was a movie, I would go see it."

Penny was happy he liked the idea of her screenplay" I know, right?, Okay, let's see what else?" shaking her head" Nope i guess that's the about it. That's the story of Penny.

"Well, it sounds wonderful"

Leonard could see Penny's mood change " It was. Until I fell in love with a jerk" then she started crying making Leonard feel awful

"Oh, God, you know, four years I lived with him. Four years, That's like as long as high school."

She paused for moment shaking her head" I just-I can't believe I trusted him." Leonard was torn as to whether or not to say something, but he didn't know if he would just make it worse

"You wanna know the most pathetic part? Even though I hate his lying, cheating guts..I still love him. Is that crazy?"

Leonard was stuck with what to say not used dealing with these sort of situations so turned to science or help"No , it's not crazy. It's a it's a paradox. Paradoxes are apart of nature. I mean , think about light. If you look at Huygens, light is wave, as confirmed by the double-slit experiments. But then along comes Albert Einstein and discovers that light behaves like particles too." Leonard could see his attempt to comfort her had only confused her' Well at least i didn't make it worse' he thought.

"Oh, I'm so sorry I'm such a mess. I didn't mean to bring up my ex on our date"

"It's okay "

"Really? most guys would be annoyed if a girl started talking about a former boyfriend on a date, especially a first one".

"Well i'm not like most guys and it was partly my fault anyway"

"How was it your fault?

"Well i asked about you and your ex was part of your life for four years"

"Still i shouldn't of let it get to me, do you mind if i go to the bathroom and freshen up? i suppose i don't look to good with all my make up ruined through crying"

"No No you go ahead take your time"

Leonard watched her get up and make her way to the bathroom , he waited patiently for her to come back, but also wondering if the date was now ruined.

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 **A/N: Thank you reading this chapter, let me know what you think**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed my last chapter, I hope you like this one**

Penny made her way to the bathroom feeling completely embarrassed she had never cried like that in front of a guy she hardly knew well in front of any guy for that matter. But it did feel good releasing her pent up emotions of her jerk of a ex, however she also felt awful for Leonard here was a guy who was adorably cute , who just wanted to have a date with her and she had probably ruined it. Letting out a sigh she decided to quickly clean up her face and after reapplying some make up, she exited the bathroom making her way back to Leonard. As she approached the table she hoped that she hadn't completely ruined there date and what ever he had planned.

Leonard sat there waiting for Penny to come back, well hoping she does, he felt partly responsible for her crying, and he found out he didn't like to see her cry, he had actually been on the verge of tears himself. He decided to make a snap decision, when and if she returns , he was going to find a way to cheer Penny up, just then he saw Penny making her way back over, she offered him a timid smile. Finally reaching there table and sitting down , he could see she had redone her make up, but her eyes where still puffy from her crying.

"Hey Leonard sorry about that but i'm back now and am looking forward to enjoying our date" smiling at him hoping to convince him she was being truthful.

"Penny i'm sorry you where upset i feel sort of responsible, so i was wondering why don't we start again and pretend that never happened and we're just beginning our date now, See how it goes ?".

Penny looked at him suspiciously not knowing where he was going with this" Okay"

Leonard smiled and nodded" Okay good, so lets start over, i'll begin" pausing for moment "So Polly, tell me about yourself?" Leonard said while smiling mischievously.

Penny chuckled at Leonard pretending to get her name wrong "It's Penny"

"Oh, sorry. Yeah. Awkward" smiling as he finished

Penny couldn't help herself and laughed before replying "Okay, let's see. I'm from Nebraska, and ever since I was a little girl I dreamed of moving to L.A. and becoming a movie star. Anyway, after years of acting lessons and waiting tables I've only managed to do a production of Anne Frank above a bowling alley. So you know, dreams do come true." finishing with a smile and two thumbs up "Okay your turn"

Leonard was still smiling his idea to cheer her up was working " Uh, let's see. Ahem. Uh , I am an experimental physicist at Caltech. Most of my research is with high-powered lasers, and, Oh I've just gotten a big government grant to see if they can be used to knock out incoming missiles".

Penny was both surprised by what he did and impressed, but was curious about what he'd just told her "Wow. Can they?"

"Oh God, no" this got another laugh out of Penny "But the money's pretty good", And i used the equipment to make my own Bat-Signal".

Penny couldn't help herself he got her laugh again "Bat-Signal? What are you, some kind of nerd?".

"Not some kind of nerd, I am the king of nerds."

This set Penny off laughing again, she was surprised she had never been on a date where the guy had been so funny and entertaining , she was actually wondering if it would always be like this with him if they where to start dating.

"What does that mean?". she asked

"It means if anyone displeases me I don't help them set up their printer". Leonard finished smiling at her

While she couldn't help but laugh again" You are so funny" and she genuinely meant it she wasn't just trying to boost his ego.

Smiling at her"Good. Remember that if I take my shirt off".

Penny was still giggling at what he just said to her"Leonard this is nice, I'm so glad we did this".

Leonard smiled "Me too"

Penny was ,she had never laughed so much with a guy on a date or anytime recently and she was truly was glad she had agreed to go out with him

The rest of the time spent in the restaurant was filled with small talk about friends family and work, both enjoying there time together immensely, they soon finished there meals and it was time to leave. Leonard paying and leaving a nice tip, as they exited the restaurant Leonard held the door open for Penny, which resulted in her giving him a tender smile which caused Leonard blush.

* * *

As they made there way back to Leonard's car Penny remembered what she wanted to do "Leonard can we go for a walk along the beach?"

Leonard didn't like the idea of walking along the beach, he had always avoided the beach as he didn't want to run the risk of maybe stepping on any medical waste. But looking at Penny he could see she really wanted too, so decided to overcome his fear and do this for her..

"Sure if you like"

Penny's face lit up and her smile was dazzling "Really? Thank you so much Leonard I love walking along the beach"

Seeing her reaction made Leonard happy, she was just so beautiful more so when she was happy, letting her take the lead they headed down towards the beach.

After a few minutes walking Penny turned to Leonard she had seen the apprehension when she asked him if they could go to the beach, but was so happy he agreed even though she guessed he didn't like the beach as much as she did. This was something she thought was unique about Leonard, he had agreed to walk along the beach with her whilst not really wanting too, Kurt on the other hand just wanted to find somewhere to hook up. But she sensed that Leonard wasn't like that in fact he probably wishes he wasn't here, but he was, because she wanted too, no other reason than for her, looking over at him again she couldn't help but smile at him, moving closer to she linked her arm through his. Leonard was surprised by what Penny had just done but was so glad agreeing to go for a walk on the beach made her so happy, and for some reason he knew he'd do anything to make her happy.

After a short while of walking in a comfortable silence and them both enjoying the closeness , Penny spoke "I love the beach thank you again for doing this "

Leonard turned to her "It's okay Penny"

smiling " Are you sure I got the impression you're not a fan of the beach?" Penny looked at him waiting for a answer.

Leonard wondered if he should tell her the truth, coming to a stop he turned to Penny seeing her expectant look, Leonard sighed "No i'm not a fan of the beach i'm a little scared of it actually"

Penny eyes widen in surprise " Why would you be afraid of the beach? is it because you know you don't fit in?" seeing the look on Leonard's face she realised that not only was that not the reason but he wasn't happy with what she said.

Leonard wasn't impressed with what she said but he thought she was just judging based on what she thought he was like although she was probably right about him not fitting in.

"No that's not it, you see i'm worried about stepping on medical waste" Leonard turned away from Penny embarrassed by what he had just revealed to her, he'd never told anyone this before.

Penny was a bit surprised by his asnswer but could tell he was embarrassed , she wanted to make him feel better plus she wanted to make up for the assumption she made about the reason he didn't go the beach.

Penny put her hand on Leonard's shoulder "Leonard that's okay"

Turning to look at her she got the full effect of his brown eyes and she found her self lost in them, she was brought out of her trance when Leonard spoke "Really?" she could see the hope in his eyes.

"Of course it's okay to be worried about that sort of stuff, but just so you know I've been walking on the beach here ever since I came out here and haven't seen any medical waste"

Still looking at her hopefully " Are you sure?"

Seeing the way he was looking she took both of his hands in hers and was amazed at how it felt to be holding them she actually had to look down to hide her blush, this was having the same effect on Leonard. If she had been looking she would of seen his blush too, Leonard was also worried about his hands getting sweaty due to his nervousness while she held them. Finally composing herself she looked up, staring straight at Leonard" Yes i'm sure" pausing before continuing " I wouldn't lie to you about this"

Leonard could see the sincerity in her eyes she was truly telling him the truth " Thanks" taking a moment before smiling " Maybe i'll start coming to the beach from now on, so i'm not so pasty" with a big goofy grin.

This made Penny smile brightly at him, grabbing his arm and continuing the walk " You should you'll love it"

* * *

After a very enjoyable walk on the beach together they soon made it back to Leonard's car, then just like the restaurant Leonard held the door to his car open for her then closing it after she was in. It was a short drive to where Leonard was taking her next they arrived at the parking lot near the movie theater, Penny following him inside wondering what movie he was going to make her watch, but to her surprise he stopped and turned to her.

Smiling at her before he spoke" So Penny what movie do you want to watch?".

Penny was stunned no guy she had been to the movies with had asked her what she wanted to watch they usually choose for her, and she rarely liked what they chose. Although they never watched the movie anyway they just started making out instead, so Penny was going to take full advantage of the chance to choose.

"Let's see Let's see ,can we watch P.S.I Love You?".

Leonard wasn't interested in the movie she chose but was happy to watch it with her if it made her happy" Sure i'll get the tickets"

* * *

They left the movie theater Penny hadn't liked the movie and she was pretty sure by the look on Leonard's face throughout the movie that he hadn't either, but he had stuck it out and hadn't complained about the movie once. It was a new experience for her going to a movie with a guy and getting to choose then actually being able to watch it . Instead of the guy choosing what to watch then taking her to a quiet corner and just making out or more, yes this was definately different but happily in a good way.

"Leonard i'm sorry about the movie I thought it would be better than that"

Leonard had been bored watching the movie, it had taken quite abit of effort to stay awake, but had somehow mangeg too, probably because he knew it would look bad if he fell asleep on a date. Now he had a problem dinner and a movie had been all he planned he didn't know what to do next, does he call it a night, does he suggest going to a bar?. He had know idea so decided to leave the decision up to Penny.

"It's okay i didn't mind it to much" Leonard paused before continuing "Penny is there somewhere you would like to go or something you want to do ?"

Penny was again stunned, he was letting her decide what to do next, her first thought was to go to a club, but she quickly discarded that idea, as she doubted Leonard had ever been to one. Also she knew guys would hit on her the entire time even if Leonard was standing right next to her and she didn't want to subject him to that. Then it came to her but she wasn't sure if he'd agree." Leonard we can go to Korea town and sing karaoke?"

Leonard had sung but only when playing rock band with the guys, but never in public but Penny wanted to and he didn't want the night to end so he agreed, even though it was close to midnight already. "Sure i'd love to go to Korea town and sing karaoke with you" he said with a smile.

* * *

They stayed at the karaoke bar till around 2am ,Leonard was exhausted but happy that he had agreed to go with her she had been so enthusiastic singing even doing duets with him. Although the down side was he discovered that Penny couldn't sing very well but she was enjoying herself and no one else seemed to mind so maybe she wasn't that bad.

After leaving he drove her home in a comfortable silence Penny seeming to be falling asleep when he looked across her and Leonard decided to just let her rest, as they back at Cheryl's apartment block .Penny roused from her semi sleep state, still in a good mood she'd had won the bet and by good fortune had actually had a great date with Leonard, no not great amazing.

Turning to Leonard smiling "Well thank you for a amazing evening Leonard i had a really nice time"

Leonard smiled back" Me too".

"Well it's late i have to be up for work in the morning" leaning over she gave Leonard a kiss on the cheek "See ya" and with that she was out the car and in the building. Leonard was so stunned by the kiss he didn't realise he hadn't said goodbye or find out if she would like to go on another date with him , but he was still happy. The date had started awkwardly but had turned into a really nice time, it had been a success , besides he could always text or maybe phone her sometime and ask if she'd like to go on another date with him. With that thought Leonard pulled away driving the entire way home with a smile on his face, wondering what it would be like to be in a relationship with Penny.

Penny entered Cheryl's apartment to find sat on the couch apparently waiting for her to come back, with a big grin on her face she spoke "So Penny youre coming home rather late I take it the date went well?"

Penny wanted to tell her how well it went but was scared she would be teased so decided to lie, shrugging her shoulders " It was okay I've been on better"

Penny could see the disappointment in Cheryl's face probably hoping for some juicy gossip about what it was like to go on a date with someone like Leonard instead of a tall muscular hunk. Well she was going to keep the truth about it to herself, she knew she'd have to tell her something though, but that could wait till the morning, she continued to make her way to the spare room she was staying in.

Once inside she closed the door leaning against it closing her eyes and finally letting out a sigh. After a few minutes she moved to the en suite bathroom and got undressed taking a quick shower then getting ready for bed. Once comfortable in bed she closed her eyes waiting for sleep to take her a smile spreading across her face as she thought about her date with Leonard. Finally sleep took her and her smile never left her face the entire night as she dreamed about what it would be like to be in a relationship with Leonard.

* * *

 **A/N :Thank you for reading I hope you enjoyed it sorry if it wasn't all that good, oh I have no idea how good or bad the movie I used is as I just picked a romance movie from 2007 and that was the first one I came across.**

 **A/N2: To anyone who is reading my story Proof of Love, I sorry I don't know when i'll be adding a new chapter as I am currently stuck with what to do so it may be a while before a new chapter .**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed my last chapter they are always appreciated.**

* * *

Penny woke up from a very pleasant dream, the smile returning to her face as she thought about Leonard, she just couldn't believe that someone like Leonard would give her the best date she's ever had. a small part her did feel guilty though back in high school a guy like Leonard she would of picked on ,no chance she would of gone on a date with them. The guilt turned to shame at how she judged guys based on there social circles and not who they where, she knew this was part of the reason why she didn't want to tell Cheryl the truth. Cheryl was her oldest friend and travelled from Nebraska not long after her and Kurt so she knew what Penny was like at high school. This is why she couldn't tell her the truth not that she was ashamed but because she knew Cheryl would end up teasing her for enjoying a date with that type of guy. Reminding her how they used to pick guys like him ,she then realised that she still had to face Cheryl and her questioning about what happened last night. With knowing there was nothing she could do to stop it ,Penny got up and went to take shower, before getting ready for work, then having to deal with Cheryl.

* * *

The guys where all huddled together in the shack listening to Sheldon plan a strategy for them to win a paintball, it was pretty useless as they always ended up losing. Howard decided this was a good time to ask about his date with Penny " Hey Leonard wasn't it your big date with the hot waitress last night?".

Looking over at Howard eyeing him suspiciously " Yeah".

"So how did it go?".

Leonard just looked at Howard the Raj and saw expectant looks on there faces and the annoyed look on Sheldon's for being interrupted" Erm it was okay"

"Just okay you go on a date with the hottest girl I have ever seen and all you can say is it was okay?"

Glaring at Howard " What do you want me to say?"

" I don't know, how about you tell us what you guys did, did she kiss you did you kiss her?" finishing with a creepy smile.

" I'm not going to tell you anything Howard, we had dinner watched a movie and that's all your going to get" getting up and leaving the shack deciding to avoid being hit than tell them about his date.

* * *

Penny took a deep breath before leaving the bedroom, only to be greeted not only by Cheryl but Emma and Sally as well " Oh hey guys what you doing here?".

Cheryl spoke for them" I think you know why, we want to know how your date went last night".

"Oh I don't really have the time I have to get to work "

"Oh please since when have you gone to work on time, sit tells what happened

Penny looked at her girlfriends all looking at her expectantly, letting out a sigh she moved to the couch and sat down, she wished she had more time to think of what to say to them.

Cheryl just stared at Penny waiting for her to say something but she didn't so decided to push her" So what happened?"

"Well he picked me up then we went to dinner and watched a movie"

Cheryl frowned " If that's all you did then how come you didn't come in till after 2 in the morning?"

Damn what does she say to that, " Erm well I wanted to go a club so after our date he dropped me off and I went to a club by myself then got a cab home"

Cheryl looked at Penny dubiously some how she didn't quite believe what Penny was saying but decided to leave it for now and focus on her time with Leonard " So how did the date with Leonard go?"

Apart of her wanted to tell the truth that she had been on the best date of her life and would happily go on another with Leonard if he asked, but she was scared of what they might say. Would they be happy for her or would they laugh at her for wanting to date someone like Leonard , instead of the kind of guys she used to date or they expected her to date.

"Well it was okay nothing great but it wasn't the worst date I ever went on so you know it wasn't bad" Looking at the three girls seeing if they had bought what she told them.

"Well I guess that will have to do, a shame though , but about what i'd expect from a guy who probably never been on a date before" Sally said.

Penny didn't take to kindly to the insult to Leonard but decided to hold her tongue and just get out of there " Well i have to go need to get to work" getting up and leaving before they could say anything more. Once in her car she took her breath she knew this wasn't the end of it the look on Cheryl's face showed that she didn't really believe what she said. But for now she had some more time to think, starting her car driving off to work.

Back in Cheryl's apartment, Cheryl sat going over what Penny said whilst the others continued to talk among themselves it was Sally who brought her out of her reverie. " Cheryl when are we going to get the shoes for Penny?"

Looking at her for a moment " I don't know, but i think we should hold off from buying them for now"

"Why she won the bet"

"Did she?".

"What do you mean? you said that he picked her up, and she came back late and you heard her while it wasn't much of a date it was still a date so she did what we wanted"

"That's just it i'm not sure she did, yes he picked her up but i'm not sure they went on a date"

"Okay what do you think happened?"

" I'm don't know, but i'm leaning towards them making a deal where they gave the impression they went on a date but actually didn't "

"You really think they would do that just to win a bet, but what would he get of it?".

"I really don't know the only other alternative is she is lying about what happened on the date but why would she do that ,unless she had a nice time and thinks we will make fun of her".

"Well let's be honest we probably would of ,if she told us she had a nice time with him" Sally said.

Emma spoke " I wouldn't of laughed at her well a few years back maybe, but I've served those guys for years and I always thought Leonard was kinda cute, i'd of gone out with him if he asked"

Cheryl thought Sally was kind of right, but while she might of teased Penny for enjoying her date with Leonard ,she wouldn't of made fun of her or mocked or picked on her . She did understand why Penny might be worried and how she would probably think they'd make fun of her for dating Leonard after all they used to pick on guys like him at school. But she wasn't like that any more and she did think he was quite cute looking along with Raj ,on the other hand Howard was quite creepy looking and Sheldon was well Sheldon. But she still needed to know if they did or didn't go on a date so she came up with a plan.

"Girls, I think we should try and convince Penny to up the bet"

"What do you mean?"

"I think we should offer her something else if she's goes on another date with him"

"Okay say that she agrees we still won't know whether she is pretending to date him or if she really likes him"

Smiling Cheryl answered " Actually we will because we're going to spy on them and see what happens"

"I don't like the sound of that, if she finds out you know what her tempers like".

"She won't as long as you don't get spotted, also Emma I need you to swap shifts with her again"

"Really? why?".

"Because I want to see how they are around each other, if she truly likes him i'll know".

Sally and Emma where not sure about this but agreed anyway just out of curiosity, with Emma also agreeing to ask Penny to switch shifts with her again.

* * *

They managed to get Penny to work the late shift on Tuesday for Emma again, Cheryl was waiting with curiosity about what will happen Penny had been quite frustrating. Every time she brought up her date with Leonard Penny would change the subject and would still not tell anymore details about what they did on there date. Although Penny was also getting annoyed with her for not honouring the bet she says she won and buying her those new shoes for winning like they promised. Cheryl and the girls fully intended to honour it as soon as they seen how she would act around him tonight, and then see if they can get her to up the bet with her going on another date with Leonard.

Penny was looking forward to working this shift, she hadn't heard from Leonard since there date on Friday and she wanted to see if he'd like to go out on another date with her. Although she wasn't looking forward to seeing his creepy friend again as she had yet to ask one of her colleagues to agree to go on a date with him. She had thought of telling him Cheryl wanting to go out with him , telling him she was just playing hard to get that's why she kept turning him down, she thought it would be funny to watch him keep hitting on her. That would teach her a lesson for not buying those shoes she rightfully won, but she wasn't that cruel, deciding she'd ask the new waitress who had started. Although that was risky as she didn't know what she would be like, although Leonard's creepy friend probably wouldn't notice what she was like due to been well stacked for such a small woman.

She saw the door open and smiled when she saw Leonard come in with his friends, although she also expected Leonard's creepy friend to as her about the girl she promised to set him up with. That shifted her mood slightly but then knowing she'll be able to see and talk to Leonard whilst he's here more than made up for having to deal with his friends. Maybe she might be able to get him alone and do something she's never done and ask him if he'd like to go on another date with her, because she really wanted too.

Making her way over to there table once they sat " Hi guys i'll be your waitress can I start you off with some drinks"

Unfortunately Sheldon spoke first " Oh not you again, why are you serving us instead of Emma?"

Surprisingly Penny just rolled her eyes at what he said, she figured that she'd have to get used to his behaviour if she was going to be spending more time with Leonard. She did wonder if Sheldon he lived alone, because she didn't think anyone would have the patience be crazy enough to live with someone like him.

"Well it's good to see you too, now what would like to drink guys?".

"Can we have three diet cokes and a lemonade please Penny". Leonard said smiling at her.

Giving him as smile back" Sure coming right up"

Leonard watched her leave to get there drinks he had been torn on whether to ask her out again the euphoria he felt after there date had worn off and now he was questioning whether she would agree to gout out with him again.

Penny returned with there drinks, surprisingly remembering who had what " There you go guys have you decided what you want?".

After giving her there orders and leaving Leonard got up and made his way to the restroom, after coming out he saw Penny clearing a empty table and decided to approach her.

"Hey"

turning at the sound of the voice seeing that it was Leonard she smiled " Hey Leonard, what's up?".

"I erm, I just wanted to say that I had a nice time on our date"

Smiling at the memory " Me too"

 _'That was good'_ Leonard thought "So I was wondering if you would like to maybe go out again sometime?".

Penny was happy that he'd asked her saving her from trying to ask him " Sure i'd love too, just let me know when and we'll arrange something".

"Great i'll call you" still smiling Penny answered " You'd better i'm looking forward to it", seeing his friends looking at them and turning to see Cheryl and Sally staring at her "I think you'd better get back to your friends and let me finish clearing this table before I bring your orders over".

Nodding" Sure i'll see you at our table then" giving her one last smile before heading back to his table.

Cheryl had been watching Penny the entire time she was around his table but couldn't see anything out of the ordinary or anything to suggest that she was attracted to Leonard. So she was now more certain that maybe they messed with them and hadn't gone a date just pretended to in order to win the bet, why she couldn't figure that out yet. However when she saw Leonard walk up to Penny and start talking to her she saw something she wasn't expecting and now she realised she was wrong ,the look on her face it was obvious she did like him. Cheryl smiled she was happy for her but also annoyed because that meant she lied about how there date went. So she decided she was still going to go ahead with her plan and have her go on another date with him and get the girls to spy on them.

After bringing the guys there meals,Penny made her way over to the bar where Cheryl was standing with Sally she saw them both smiling at her and it made her a bit nervous as to why " Hey what she you two smiling about?".

"Nothing we just saw you talking to Leonard and wondered what you where talking about, that's all". Sally said grinning.

Penny didn't quite believe them but let it go " Oh well he was just saying thank you for our date the other day that's all".

Cheryl decided now was a good time to ask " So about the bet, do you fancy say upping it a bit ?".

Penny frowned she didn't know what she was up to" What do you mean?"

Cheryl continued" Well how about you go on another date with him, if he agrees to it we'll buy you a dress as the shoes, but if he doesn't then we don't have to get you the shoes".

Penny smiled at this not only was she going to get a pair of shoes but now a dress as well,they didn't know that he'd already asked her on a second date she was just waiting to find out when. Although she wondered if they had to see him ask her out or her ask him? " Erm does he have to ask me or can I ask him?".

Cheryl thought about it, but decided it didn't really matter as all she wanted to do was get them on a date so she can found out just how much Penny really likes Leonard.

" It's up to you if you want to ask him then go ahead and it doesn't have to be in front of us".

Cheryl's answer surprised Penny but it was a relief she didn't have to have Leonard ask her out again in front of them, " Well I might as well tell you then he already asked me out again" deciding to lie a little. "However I told him I wasn't sure and i'd think about it".

Cheryl had seen there interaction and knew Penny was probably lying ,he wouldn't of looked so happy if she'd said that, she guessed Penny had in fact said yes and was just keeping it to her self. It didn't matter that she had lied " Well go tell him you that you will go on another date with him", smiling at her.

Penny looked at her for a moment before shrugging " Okay" walking away and back to the guys table going directly to Leonard leaning over to whisper in his ear " I'm looking forward to our date". It got her the reaction she wanted he looked at her with a huge smile on his face " Me too". turning and leaving his table making her way back to Cheryl " There I told him yes ".

Cheryl knew now though that Penny was just pretending and she probably had already agreed to go on a date with when they spoke earlier, but she wasn't going to bring it up. "That's great, when are you going out?".

"I don't know he said he would call and let me know". walking away before Cheryl could ask her anything else, but unfortunately she was suddenly face to face with Leonard's creepy friend.

"Well hello fair lady, I hope you haven't forgotten our deal"

Sighing " No I haven't".

"Then when do I get to meet the mother of my children?"

 _'Is he for real'_ she thought" I haven't asked her yet but I will".

"Well don't leave it too long someone as good looking as me might be off the market soon, and then I might have to mention our conversation to Leonard".

Penny just glared at him " Fine i'll ask her as soon as I see her and if she agrees i'll give her number to Leonard, because there is no way i'm giving you my number".

With that she walked past and back to the guys table standing next to Leonard putting her hand on his shoulder " So how Is everything?". turning to look at her and fully aware of her touching him " It's was great and again so was the service", grinning at her. Penny smiled down at him and stayed with there table for a while. Penny ended up spending all her free time at there table much to Sheldon's annoyance always resting her hand on Leonard's shoulder.

They left after a while Leonard once again leaving her a extra tip, Leonard happy she'd agreed to go out with him again and Penny happy he'd asked her out again. Cheryl was also glad they where going out again as she really wanted to find out just how much Penny really liked Leonard. She'd seen a glimpse of it when they spoke to each other but wanted to see how deep it was when they were alone.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading this chapter, I am sorry for it not being good it feels like it's just a mess to me, anyway please review I really appreciate them**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews of my last chapter they are much appreciated, i hope you like this chapter.**

It was Friday night and Penny was getting ready for her date with Leonard this time she was far more excited than she was before their first date last Friday. This time she was going to wear a dress

Leonard sat nervously in his car waiting to go up to get Penny for their date, he had gone out and got himself a new shirt and jacket for this date hoping that he looked well dressed.

Penny was all dressed up like she was going somewhere special not because she was but because she wanted to look good for Leonard, smiling to herself at his reaction when he sees her. She was going to wear heels but decided against it opting to wear a cute pair of flats she had

When she came out of her bedroom she was greeted again by a grinning Cheryl " Now that's more like it ". But are you sure you wont give him a heart attack dressed like that?".

"Well i wanted to look better this time it is a second date after all".

Cheryl took this as opening " So you see this as a second date not just a attempt to win the bet and get the shoes we owe and a dress too?"

Damned Penny thought " Yes to both i do see this as just a way of winning the bet, but it is a second date as well and besides you said i hadn't put much effort into the way i looked before our first one".

"I did but this quite the turn around from what you wore the first time, you look like your going to spend the night on the town looking to hook up with some guy".

Penny looked at herself then at Cheryl " No i don't ".

"If you say so",

"I do, why are so interested in the way i'm dressed?".

"I'm just curious that's all, you seemed to be more invested in this date than the first one".

 _Damn, what can she say to get out of this'_ But luck would have it Leonard chose that moment to knock on the door, Penny was thankful for the interruption, making her way to the door. Taking a breath and trying to calm her racing heart and the butterflies in her stomach, unfortunately when she opened the door , seeing Leonard stood in a very nice suit. Her heart rate picked up more and the butterflies in her stomach went crazy, all this just from seeing him , the expression on Leonard's face when he saw her was what she had hoped for.

Leonard was speechless Penny looked absolutely amazing, but at the same time he was a little worried, he remembered on there last date she had wanted to go to a club. But he hadn't because well it just wasn't him, but he wanted to show her he would do anything to make her happy, so tonight they where going to a club after there meal if she wanted too. However the way Penny looked he was seriously considering changing his mind, as he was worried that in the club she'll probably be constantly hit on. Worse what if she saw a guy she really liked and just ditched him in the club to be with that guy, Leonard knew he was over thinking but he just couldn't help it.

Penny saw the expression on Leonard's face changed and grew a little worried " Leonard are you okay?".

Penny's voice brought Leonard out of his thoughts, looking at her he smiled " I'm fine, i was just thinking that's all, you look beautiful Penny".

Just like the last time he gave her a compliment she blushed , she wondered why this happened she had been given compliments all her life yet she never reacted like she does when Leonard gives her one. " Thank you". Looking at how Leonard was dressed she was quite surprised how great he looked in what looked to be a new shirt and jacket " You look great your self Leonard, are they new?".

Grinning at her " Actually they are, how did you know?".

Shrugging her shoulder " Just a guess".

Smiling at her, before holding out his hand " Ready to go?".

Grinning back at him as she excepted his hand " Yes". Not bothering to look behind her as she shut the door.

* * *

As soon as the door was shut Cheryl was on her phone , Emma picked " Emma they're on the way now".

"Okay we'll wait for him to drive off before we follow".

"Good, just don't let them see you".

Emma had just got off the phone when Penny and Leonard excited the building, watching with surprise as Leonard open the passenger door for Penny before closing after she git in. Waiting for the car to pull away first, Sally began following them a short distance behind.

Leonard drove to the same restaurant they went to on the first date, Penny's smile grew when she saw where they where " Leonard i can't believe you brought me here again ".

Smiling back " Well i knew how much you liked it last time and i remembered you wanted to walk on the beach afterwards, so i thought why not come here again and if you want to go to the beach afterwards we can".

Penny's smile turned into a grin " I would love that, but are you sure you want to go to the beach? i remember what you said about it".

"No not really but i'll do it if you want to go".

Penny was still surprised at how he would do things for her no one else would, she could feel tears welling up,leaning over she kissed him on the cheek. " Thank you sweetie". They got out of the car and headed into the restaurant.

They shared a wonderful meal together and afterwards went for a walk along the beach , Penny was enjoying being there with Leonard so much so she linked her arm through his and rested her head on his shoulder . Leonard was surprised that she had her head on his shoulder, but was to distracted by thinking about whether he should attempt to kiss her or not.

For Emma and Sally after following them to the restaurant they had sneaked over to window to see what they where like in there, both were taken aback by how happy Penny looked. When they got up to leave they quickly moved away and back to the car, waiting to follow them to wherever they went next so when they didn't go to the car but went to the beach. They both proceeded to follow them although carefully as they didn't have anywhere to hide , luckily Sally had brought some binoculars with her so they could watch from a greater distance.

Leonard was still going over whether he should kiss Penny or not, when he remembered something by the Austrian physicist Erwin Schrödinger called Schrödinger cat. In which he hypothesised Schrödinger's cat: a cat, a flask of poison, and a radioactive source are placed in a sealed box. If an internal monitor (e.g. Geiger counter) detects radioactivity (i.e. a single atom decaying), the flask is shattered, releasing the poison, which kills the cat. The Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics implies that after a while, the cat is _simultaneously_ alive _and_ dead. Yet, when one looks in the box, one sees the cat _either_ alive _or_ dead not both alive _and_ dead. This poses the question of when exactly quantum superposition ends and reality collapses into one possibility or the other. Leonard thought this could be applied to his current conundrum over whether he should kiss Penny or not he knew kissing her could be both good or bad and only by kissing her will he know.

"Schrödinger's cat" Penny heard Leonard mumble making her lift her head to look at him " I'm sorry what is Schrödinger's cat?".

Leonard hadn't realised that he had said that out loud "Wh.. why did you say that".

"Because you just said Schrödinger's cat, so tell me what is it?".

"Well in 1935, Erwin Schrödinger, in an attempt to explain the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum physics, he proposed an experiment. A cat is placed in a box with a sealed vial of poison that will break open at a random time. Now , since no one knows when or if the the poison ha been released , then until the box is opened, the cat can be thought of as both alive and dead.".

Penny just looked at Leonard confused " I'm sorry why would you be thinking of something like that now?".

"Well just like Schrödinger, something i was thinking about has the potential to be both good and bad. It's only by opening the box that i'll find out which it is".

Penny was still confused " Okay, so what was it you where thinking about ?".

Looking at Leonard muster up all his courage " This" taking a step forward placing his lips on hers. Placing his left hand on her arm and his right behind her head.

Penny was surprised by the kiss not just because she wasn't expecting it but the feeling the rushed through her body as soon as his lips touched hers. Her own hands rested on his upper chest

After the kiss Penny kept her eyes closed for moment before opening them " Well if i understand what you said, then i'd say the cat's alive " patting him on the chest whilst smiling brightly at him. They turned and continued to walk along the beach both smiling happily about their first kiss.

Sally was lying on the beach watching what was happening between her friend and Leonard through a pair of binoculars , when she saw them kiss and Penny's reaction she was left shocked. Emma unfortunately couldn't see so much as she was without the binoculars so was relying on what Sally was telling her. But even from this distance she could still see that Penny and Leonard had just kissed but she couldn't see how Penny responded to it.

"Sally what's going on? did she like the kiss?".

Sally passed the binoculars too Emma " See for yourself".

Taking the binoculars from Sally she looked back over to where Penny was they where still not moved but she could clearly see the expression on Penny's face , and it was one of pure joy.

"Well she clearly liked the kiss, i guess she does like him after all and wasn't pretending too like Cheryl thought".

"Maybe, but i think we should stay watching them for a while longer see if things change".

"Okay but i don't think we need to see anymore, they clearly are dating"

"I know it's just i have never seen that expression on her face when she looked so happy".

"That's a good thing though isn't it ? we should be happy she's happy".

"It is, but i'm worried if it's more to do with him being so nice to her and not that she really wants to be with him".

Emma shook her head " Can't we just except that Leonard is a good thing for her and we never know she may truly want to be with him and he's not some rebound".

"Well i hope you're right".

"I am". with that Emma went back to looking towards Penny and Leonard both where now walking along the beach again with Penny back to resting her head on his shoulder.

After a while Leonard and Penny left the beach and went back to his car after getting in Leonard took a breath " Penny what would you like to do now?".

"Well i'd like to go to a club and drink and dance " Leonard went instantly nervous, he didn't like the idea of a club all those better looking and taller guys who he knew would hit on Penny even though he'll be standing right there. But Penny had clearly shown she liked him and had enjoyed there first kiss so he doubted if guys hit on her she would ditch him for them.

Taking another breath he nodded " Okay we can go if you like".

Penny's eyes lit up " You will?".

Leonard nodded "I will, However just so you know i'm not much of a dancer".

Throwing her arms around him " Thank you sweetie".

After she let him go he drove them to the club.

* * *

Once in the club Leonard nervously followed Penny through the throngs of drunk dancing patrons , Leonard already hated this place in the few minutes he'd been ion here he had been almost knocked over several times. Penny was just ahead and Leonard was struggling to keep up with her but was still able to see her long blonde her. That was until he got knocked by yet another dancer unfortunately he stumbled this time and by the time he regained his balance , he had lost sight of Penny. Leonard looked around the best he could but couldn't see her anymore, deciding his best hope was to continue in the direction he thought she was going in. He made his way through the crowd and eventually noticed a bar , taking a gamble that this is where he would find her , he headed towards the bar. Once he got near he felt relief at spotting Penny but that soon turned into disappointment when he notice that she was being talked to by the very kind of guy he was worried about her seeing. As he approached it took until he was stood almost behind her before he could hear what the guy was saying, unfortunately it was just what he suspected , the guy was hitting on her. Leonard had no idea what to do , he knew if he tried to confront the guy he would lose as he was much bigger than he was. Surprisingly he ended up having to do nothing .

"Listen buddy i'm not interested i'm here with my boyfriend".

Leonard smiled at her calling him her boyfriend, taking this moment to intervene " Hey Penny".

Hearing Leonard she quickly turned around, smiling brightly at him before throwing her arms around him" Leonard sweetie " .

Leonard was happy at reaction and at the shocked look on the guys face before he left.

Emma and Sally had managed to stay close to Leonard without being seen, and had witnessed the whole event. Emma just smiled at the sight of Penny not been interested in the guy hitting on her and the bright smile on her face when Penny had noticed Leonard.

Leaning over to Sally so she was able to hear her " Well there we have it Penny does like him"

"Yeah she does, i'm happy for her though i don't know why she lied to us".

"Does it matter she is clearly happy with him lets leave it at that".

"Okay, so what do we do now?".

"Well i don't know about you but i plan on having a drink and dancing".

Penny and Leonard stayed at the club till closing time , Penny was having a great time she hadn't had many drinks as she didn't want to ruin this by getting drunk. She had convinced Leonard to dance with her he was clearly reluctant but did it anyway, after the first dance he became more comfortable with it which made her happy. While he wasn't the best dancer he wasn't as bad as he thought he was and besides she didn't really care how good he was she was just happy he was dancing with her. Unfortunately the guy who hit on her at the bar turned out not to be the only one to hit on her, she told them all to get lost as she was with her boyfriend. She felt awful and angry every time one of them hit on her as she saw the dejected look on Leonard's face , she assumed he thought she would leave him for one them. This confused her as she had shown no intentions of doing it yet every time a guy hit on her he would act the same way. So after they had been successfully gotten rid of Penny would put her arms around Leonard's neck smile sweetly at him before kissing him passionately. It did the trick as he would smile brightly at her afterward making her happy she was able to bring him out of the misery of having to watch her being hit on.

Leonard had for the most part had been enjoying himself, while he wasn't one for coming to clubs and dancing, having Penny in his arms happily dancing with him made it tolerable. He hated it every time a guy tried to hit on her and smiled inside every time she brushed them off and calling him her boyfriend then after they left putting her arms round him and kissing him.

* * *

They stayed until the club closed a very happy Penny and Leonard left the club, Penny spied someone she thought she knew, she was pretty sure it was Sally .

Turning to Leonard "Leonard sweetie i just saw someone i know i'm just going to say hello, will you wait here for me?".

Leonard just nodded " Sure Penny".

Smiling brightly " Thanks" giving a quick peck on the lips, before going after who she was sure was Sally , it was on her way that she also saw Emma.

Sally and Emma where just out the club " Well were lucky they didn't spot us ". said Emma.

Sally turned " Yeah we..". suddenly going wide eyed, before turning quickly and walking more quickly, Emma was confused until she looked back and saw Penny heading towards them. Turning around and quickly following Sally, when she got to Sally's car Emma was just about to get in when she felt someone grab her shoulder , she knew instantly it was Penny.

Turning around to look at her " Oh hey Penny what are you doing here?". she asked innocently.

"I'm on my date with Leonard, but i saw Sally wondering why she was here i made my way over but she looked shocked when she saw me and started to hurry away. Then i saw you too and you started to do the same" squinting her eyes Penny continued " Where you spying on me?".

"No no we weren't we just so happen to be at the same club as you" by this point Sally had got back out the car walking to stand next to Emma.

Penny looked at them both " No you're lying ... you where spying on me, why where you doing that?".

Sighing Emma decided to come clean" Sorry Penny, yes we where it's just that we wanted to see how you where with Leonard on a date, that's all"

"THAT'S ALL ! what gives you the right to see what me and Leonard do on our date". Penny had a sudden thought " How long have you two been spying on us?".

This time it was Sally who answered " Since you left Cheryl's".

Penny looked at them completely in shock at what she had just heard " Why would you do this ? " a moment past and Penny had a sudden realisation " You don't believe we are dating, that's it isn't it?".

When neither answered " I guess i have my answer , you think i've just been pretending to go on dates with Leonard to win those stupid bets". Well guess what i went out with him because i like him , yes the bet was the reason i originally went out with him and wanted him to asked me out ,but i realised i like being with him".

"Where sorry Penny but you have to see from our point of view,he isn't exactly the kind of guy you date".

"Are you saying i'm shallow? ".

"No it's just that he isn't the type of guy we've seen you with and i know we made the bet with you to date someone like him but we didn't think you actually like him".

"That sounds a lot like you do think i'm shallow, yes i've never dated a guy like Leonard before, but after going on our first date i realised he was better than any of the guys i used to date. Oh and by the way , when i first saw Leonard at the Cheesecake factory i thought he was really cute so i would of gone out with him if he'd asked , even without me wanting to win the bet".

"You know what i don't care what you guys think " and with she turned and headed back to Leonard , annoyed at her supposed friends behaviour.

* * *

When Penny came back to where Leonard was waiting for her he could see something was wrong " Penny is everything okay?".

"It's fine Leonard" Penny snapped .

Leonard was taken aback by her tone " Are you sure because it doesn't sound like it".

Penny glared at Leonard " I said it's fine, can you just take me home".

Before Leonard could answer Penny was already heading towards where he parked his car, Leonard had no idea what had upset Penny but given her mood he wasn't going to try and ask. When he got to his car he found her leaning on it waiting for him to open , as soon as he unlocked it she got in , not giving him a chance to do what he been doing since there first date.

The drive home was silent Penny was still annoyed at finding out that her supposed friends had been spying her as they couldn't believe that she liked dating Leonard. When they arrived Leonard just pulled over and she didn't say anything just getting out and heading into the apartment building leaving Leonard to wonder if he would see her again.

Cheryl had gotten a message from Emma informing her that Penny had caught them spying on her and they had admitted to doing it and how it was her idea.

Hearing the door open Cheryl saw the angry look on Penny's face " Penny " but she stopped speaking when all she got was a glare from Penny as she stomped to her room and slamming her door shut.

Penny just collapsed onto her bed finally allowing her tears she had been holding in to fall, how could her friends do that to her?, why couldn't they believe she wanted to date Leonard. Oh god Leonard she felt awful by the way the night ended it wasn't his fault, she was just angry at her friends that's why she snapped at him , when all he doing was asking how she was. Worse still she had not only not spoken to him all the way home but she got out without even thanking him for such a wonderful night, that she had put a dampener on at the end.

Penny tears increased she hoped that this wasn't the end of there relationship hoping that when she saw him next that she could explain why she was rude towards him at the end. That's if he would want to see her again, after all if a guy had done what she had at the end of there date she probably wouldn't want anything to do with them.

Penny eventually fell asleep still in her dress and what would end up being a very restless night for her.

 **A/N Thank you for reading , sorry if it's not that good; please review and let me know what thought of this chapter.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:Thank you to everyone who reviewed my previous chapter, they are all much appreciated.**

The morning Penny woke up groaning when she realised she had fallen asleep still wearing her dress, she got getting undressed before heading into the shower.

While taking her shower Penny recalled her date last night with Leonard, remembering it brought a smile to her face, Leonard had looked so handsome last night in his suit. She had enjoyed the date going to the restaurant and the walk on the beach , her smile grew as remembered that it was on the beach that Leonard had kissed her for the first time. Remembering the kiss the only way she could describe how it felt was wow, no kiss had made her feel the way that one kiss from Leonard had made her feel. After the beach they went to a club and Penny had for the most part had a really good time getting to dance with Leonard and drink without getting to drunk. Of course the downside was she had guys coming up to her all night trying to hit on her and seeing how Leonard looked every time a guy came up to her made her sad. But she quickly made sure to reassure him by giving him a kiss after she got rid of the guy, and while also making a point of telling the guys she had a boyfriend. Her smile fell and tears came to her eyes again as she remembered also how their great night together was ruined by her spotting Sally then Emma outside the club. Then confronting them as to why they where there , of course finding out that they where spying on her. Unfortunately her being angry at what she had found out meant Leonard was on the receiving end of her anger also not because she was angry with him. Just that when she gets angry she can't help being angry at everyone not just the ones who deserves it. Thinking about her being angry at Leonard for no reason other than the fact he just happened to be with her when she was angry, Penny began to sob at how she was with Leonard.

After a while Penny was able to compose herself enough to finish her shower after drying herself off and putting in her underwear and then a robe. She picked up her phone deliberating whether to send Leonard a message or phone him, but both options weren't right she needed to apologise to him face to face . However she didn't know when she'd see him next or where he lived , after thinking for a moment she decided she would phone and ask him could she come to his apartment tonight. Where she would apologise to him in person and have the added benefit of seeing where he lived, and maybe get to spend some time with him as well deciding this was her plan she phoned Leonard.

* * *

Leonard got up he was still confused as to what happened last night, every thing seemed to going great until she went after the person she knew only to come back in a snapping at him . Then walking off on him then not saying a word to him all the way home , then getting out of his are without so much as a goodbye or thank you.

He picked up his phone checking to see if he had received a message from Penny, disappointed to see he hadn't but he did have one from Howard

 **"Hey Leonard, i was wondering did Penny give you a phone number for me?.**

Crap he had forget to give him the number, he had no idea why Penny was giving him a number of a waitress to give to Howard , but it was none of his business.

 **"Sure Howard here it is"** Leonard sent Howard The number Penny had given him.

 **"Thanks buddy"**

 **"No problem".**

As he was about to put his phone down it started to ring and he saw it was Penny " Hello".

"Hey Leonard , i want to say i'm sorry about how are dated ended, can i come over and see you to explain ?".

"Um sure Penny when do you want to come?".

"Well i'm in work till 4 so let say 6pm ?"

"That's fine we have takeout at 6 so you'll be able to join us , i'll see you then"

"Great can you get me some dumplings , also you need to tell me where you live so i know where i'm going"

"Oh of course it's 2311 North Los Robles Avenue , apartment 4A, word of waring the life doesn't work so you'll have to use the stairs"

"Okay thanks i guess i'll see you then bye Sweetie"

"Bye Penny".

Both had smiles on their faces after the all , Leonard because she apologised and was coming to his tonight and was going to explain to him what went wrong. Penny because Leonard didn't seem mad at how their at ended and was allowing to come to his and apologise for how things ended and she was going to tell him why.

Penny got ready for work whilst doing so she started to think about how to deal with her second problem, namely her supposed friends spying on her at the request of Cheryl. Deciding to give herself some time to think about it she left her bedroom and strode to the door ignoring everything Cheryl was saying, she'll deal with her and Sally and Emma later.

Penny made her way back to Cheryl's place , she had spent the entire day trying to figure out what to do but all she was doing was getting angry at them for what they did. She was still not in the mood to talk to them so when she came in she just ignored Cheryl heading to her room , taking a quick shower and getting dressed ready to go and see Leonard. After she was done she quickly left the apartment this time Cheryl didn't say anything, making her way down stairs and to her car , getting in a driving over to Leonard's.

* * *

Leonard had arrived with the food , he hadn't told Sheldon or the guys that Penny was coming over tonight, thinking best to have it happen more of a surprise to them.

Entering his apartment, Sheldon looked up " Finally Leonard what took you so long?".

Sighing" Sorry our order to longer than normal " In fact Leonard had taken his time getting there order as he wanted them to be only starting to eat when Penny arrived. Placing the takeout on the table emptying it out slowly hoping Sheldon wouldn't notice the difference, unfortunately he was wrong " Leonard why is there extra food".

" Well because i have a guest coming over "

"A Guest? when where you planning on informing me? you no this goes against the room mate agreement".

"Sheldon "Leonard said slightly exasperated " It will be fine "

"How can you say that, the inclusion of additional person will effect the balance of our meal times"

Leonard was about to respond when there was a knock on the door " I'll get it". Leonard rushed to the door taking a breath before opening it to be greeted by a smiling Penny.

"Hey you"

Smiling back at her " Hey, come in".

Penny walked in and was surprised to see the other three guys from the restaurant where here as well , she had been hoping it would just be her and Leonard " Oh hello".

"Leonard why is the waitress from the Cheesecake Factory here?".

"Because she asked could she come here ".

"But Why?".

"Because i wanted to see Leonard and get to see where he lived".

"Why would you want to do that?".

Penny was getting tired of the conversation " Because he's my boyfriend and i'd like to see where he lives and spend some time with him". Glaring at Sheldon," You got a problem with that".

Howard perked up at hearing that "So he's your boyfriend now?".

Penny turned her glare to Howard " Yes he is , what's it to you anyway?".

Leonard decided to intervene before things got out of hand " Guys the take out is getting cold" That did it , they all started to settle and start eating. Penny was wondering where to sit when she saw Leonard bring over a wooden chair and place it next to the cream coloured chair. Looking up at her he smiled patting the back of the cream chair " Penny do you want to sit here?".

Smiling back at Leonard she made her way over to the chair sitting down , Leonard started to dish out the takeout making sure to hand Penny hers first .

"Here you go Penny , the dumpling you asked for".

Turning to him with a smile " Thank you sweetie".

Penny could feel the other guys eyes on her and it was making her uncomfortable so she tried starting a conversation " So what do you guys do? i know Leonard is...Pausing to try and remember what he told he " I want to say a experimental physicist " seeing Leonard grinning while nodding to conform she got it right. So what is it you guys do?".

Looking at them waiting for them to say something , Sheldon was first to respond " Well i'm A Theorectical Physicist i have a iq infinately higher thand anyone else in this room i work at Caltech and am currently working on m theory ot string theory to lamens like you".

Penny just blinked not sure if had insulted her again deciding to move on looking at Howard and Raj " So what about you guys?" wait Howard your a engineer right?".

"I'm a M.I.T trained engineer".

"What' the difference?".

Sheldon piped up " Nothing he just thinks by saying he's a M.I.T trainded engineer sounds better than just saying a engineer".

"Okay, what about you Raj?".

Raj looked flustered and leaned over to Howard and started whispering in his ear, Penny waited for Howard to tell her what he said " He says he's a gay porn star". Raj got even more agitated and started to whisper in Howard's ear again , Howard turned to Raj " Well you should learn to talk to women".

Penny was confused as to what was going on , Leonard decided to end it " Penny Raj is a Astrophysicist and also works at Caltech".

Penny looked at Raj and saw him smile and give a thumbs up to Leonard " So you all work at the same university then?".

"Yes " was the group response, then they all went back to eating, Penny looked at them wondering who would pick up the conversation seeing that no one was Penny took it up again . "So what do you guys do for fun?".

"Well we place video games , read comic books , play board games , card games we pay Klingon boggle" Sheldon realed off to Leonard's embarrassment .

Penny turned to Leonard " Klingon boggle?".

"Yeah it's like regular boggle except in Klingon". Leonard said slightly embarrassed "

Howard decided to ask Penny a question " So Penny tell us about yourself".

"Well let's see i'm from Omaha Nebraska and ever since I was a little girl I dreamed of moving to L A and becoming a movie star, things haven't worked out as well as i'd hoped but I still believe my dream will come true".

Leonard put his hand on Penny making her look at him smiling at " I'm sure it will Penny".

Smiling back him " Thanks", before continuing " I work at the Cheesecake factory which you all already know, i'm also a vegetarian expect for steak, I love steak".

"So when did move to LA?".

Penny thought for a moment " It was just after I graduated , my then boyfriend who I had been with since I was seventeen, wanted to come here as well so we did and here I am".

Penny hoped that no one asked anymore that relationship unfortunately Howard was too nosy " So how long where you guys together?".

Even though she didn't want to answer she did anyway " We where together for over four years".

"Why did you guys break up?".

"Because I found him cheating on me"

Leonard could see that Penny was getting uncomfortable about this topic, and he remembered how upset she got talking about her ex boyfriend "Hey guys what do you want to do?".

Sheldon was glad someone was changing the topic because he was not interested in the life of the woman currently in his apartment "Well I think we should play some Halo". Looking at Penny" Unfortunately it only accommodates 4 people , so you have to leave now".

Both Leonard and Penny where stunned at Sheldon's remark essencially he was kicking Penny out " Sheldon don't be rude". turning to Penny " You don't have to go".

Penny actually wasn't interested in watching four grown men play video games " No it's okay Leonard, I going to go". Grabbing Leonard's arm " Leonard before I go can I talk to you". seeing the others staring at them she continued " In private".

Leonard nodded not sure why she wanted to talk to him in private, hoping it was nothing bad " Sure we can go to my room if you like".

Smiling at him " Okay " then standing up waiting till Leonard got up and followed him to his room, upon entering Penny was a bit surprised at how well without being rude how nerdy it looked. She looked around at all the to her anyway toys and the posters on the walls of strange things looking down at his dark blue comforter on his bed moved over and sat down. Leonard waited as he watched Penny observe to the stuff in his room before he sat down on his bed, before sitting down next to her waiting to hear what she wanted to talk about.

Penny felt Leonard sit on the bed next to her but not saying anything she knew he was waiting for her to start talking about whatever it was he thought she wanted to tell him.

Penny was going over and over what she should say to him and how to start the conversation, finally starting with something simple , turning to look at him she took his hand in hers " I'm sorry".

Leonard didn't know what she was apologising for " Sorry for what?"

"For last night , I know I've already told you that I was sorry , but I need to say sorry ruining what had been a amazing night with you. But how I acted towards you at the end, believe me when I tell you, you had done nothing wrong it's just when I get angry I take it out on every one".

Leonard nodded he at first thought he had done something wrong and that's why she was angry towards him , it was good to know he hadn't but he wanted to know why she got angry. " Penny what go you so angry?".

"Well you remember when I said I saw someone I knew then went over to them" Leonard nodded "Well it turns out they where friends of mine and when I asked why they where there. I found they where spying on us and had been since the start of our date, finding that out got me really angry and that why are was the way I was to you when I got back".

Leonard was stunned to find out Penny's friends had been spying on them " Why would they do that".

Penny looked at Leonard wondering how much to tell him about it all, for moment she even considered telling him the whole truth about the bet, but she didn't know how he'd react to that. So decided to tell him a partial truth .

"Well I turns out that my supposed friends didn't believe we where going on a date".

Leonard frowned " Why would they think that? what did they think we where doing?".

"They thought we where just pretending to date".

Leonard was getting more confused" Why would they think we where pretending?".

Penny just looked at Leonard not able to say anything how does she tell him without him finding out about the bet, "Well I think they erm think I wouldn't go on a date with you not once but twice. So they wanted to see if we where really dating or you know just messing with them".

Leonard was completely lost he had no idea why her friends where spying on them or why they thought they where only pretending to go on dates , and he had a feeling that Penny wasn't telling the whole truth as what she was saying made no sense. But he was going to let it go for now " Okay".

Penny could see that Leonard didn't buy her answer but was glad he had let it go for now at least " So Leonard what do you want to do now?".

"Well i'm supposed to be playing Halo with the guys".

Penny nodded remembering what Sheldon had rudely said to her " Well okay I better be going then". She started to get but Leonard grabbed her arm " Penny you don't have too".

Smiling at him " No it's okay".

"Please stay I don't care about playing that game i'd rather we did something together ".

Penny heart melted , he was willing to give up on something he enjoyed doing so he could spend time with her again. Penny wanted to agree but he had been letting her make all the decisions on their dates so this time she was going to let him do something he liked " Okay but where going to do something you want, so what do you want to do?".

Leonard didn't have a clue what to choose , as he thought things he liked doing Penny probably wouldn't have a interest in, thinking of the least nerdy thing he does "Do you want to go bowling".

Penny grinned, she actually liked bowling so it was perfect they could something they both liked " I'd love too".

A huge grin spread across Leonard's face " Okay but we've got to hurry they won't be open much longer".

Holding out her hand whilst smiling at him , he took her hand as he stood and they left Leonard's bedroom still holding hands only to come around the corner and find the three others staring at them.

"Ah finally she's leaving now we get to playing Halo".

"Actually we're both leaving"

Sheldon looked shocked " Leonard you know when we play Halo we do teams you and I and Wolowitz and Koothrappoli , how are we meant do that that if you leave "

"I'm sorry Sheldon , but I want to spend time with Penny " This made Penny smile he wanted to spend time with her instead of his friends, she remembered how Kurt always seemed to choose his friends over her. Leonard was so much better he didn't put his own interests before hers although he did have a habit of doing what she wants , she was going to have to get him to start letting them do things he wants as well starting with bowling.

"Well that's completely unacceptable Leonard".

Sighing " Well Sheldon I don't care" and with that he left the apartment still holding hands with a smiling Penny, they made there way down to his car silently, once in his Leonard sighed.

Penny looked over to sympathectically " You okay".

Turning to look at her yeah , i'm just going to have pay for that at some point"

Penny frowned " You're kidding right?".

Shaking his head " I wish I where but unfortunately i'm not, anyway we better get going if we want to get there in time to bowl."

* * *

They arrived at there bowling center and where lucky that they had time to play a couple of games , after paying and getting there shoes making they're way over to there lane. Penny was up first going to pick up her ball but paused to turn and look at Leonard " Sweetie".

Leonard looked up "Yeah".

"A word of warning i'm pretty good bowler, so i'm sorry sweetie but i'm gonna kick your ass at this".

Leonard smiled then shrugged his shoulders "That's okay I don't mind I just want to have fun".

Penny was once again stunned , Leonard didn't seem to care if he lost, and once again she couldn't help but compare him to Kurt, when she had gone bowling with Kurt he was just as competive as her. When he won he would gloat about how much better than her he was , however when he lost which happened a lot he would throw a tantrum claiming she was just lucky.

They where on the way home after the bowling matches , Penny had a huge smile on her face she had beaten Leonard quite easily but not once did Leonard care about her beating him. Whilst he wasn't bad he wasn't great either but he always looked enthusiastic at what ever number of pins he managed to knock down, getting excited to have even hit any. This actually had Penny start to cheer him on and was just as excited as he was when he managed to get a strike, yep that had been her favourite game of bowling ever.

* * *

They arrived back at Los Robles Leonard parking his car , Leonard turned to Penny smiling at her " I had a really nice time I can honestly say bowling without Sheldon is a lot more fun".

Penny grinned " Me too I especially liked how I beat your ass at it"

Leonard shrugged " Hey I don't mind losing to you it's Sheldon I hate losing too".

They sat silently in the car for a moment , Penny not wanting to leave as she knew if she did she would be going home and she wasn't ready to deal with Cheryl yet, maybe Leonard would like her to stay a bit longer. " Leonard do you mind if I come up with you?".

"Sure you can but don't you want to go home?".

"I'm not in the mood too, remember what I told you about the girls ? " Leonard nodded " Well it turns out Cheryl was in on it too".

Leonard felt sorry for her, knowing your friends are spying on you isn't something he'd be happy about either " Well in that case you can stay as long as you want".

Penny looked at Leonard a idea forming , she wondered if this was a good idea but she decided to risk it " Well in that case , can I stay here tonight ".

Leonard turned to Penny wide eyed " You want to stay here ?".

"Sure I don't want to deal with Cheryl and I am a bit tired , I can sleep on the couch".

Leonard was still trying to process what Penny was saying she wanted to stay in his apartment, while he liked the idea of seeing Penny when he gets up in the morning he knew Sheldon won't be happy. Looking at Penny and seeing her looking at him with expectantly he decide to heck with Sheldon " Sure Penny you can sleep on the if you want, or you can have ny bed I've just got new pillows there hypoallergenic ".

Penny was pleased he was letting her stay , she had to admit the idea of sleeping in his bed was enticing. However she wanted to wait for when they'll be sleeping in it together and she knew that wouldn't happen tonight " The couch is fine". With that they got out of Leonard's car and made there way into the building Penny took a hold of Leonard's hand as they walked up the stairs in a comfortable silence. When they finally made it to 4A , they unfortunately found Sheldon still up sitting in his spot wearing his pyjamas when he saw Penny follow Leonard in he was not pleased.

"Leonard why is she coming in with you".

"Penny is too tired to drive so I offered her the couch".

Sheldon stood glaring at Penny " Leonard a word", sighing Leonard walked over to Sheldon who had moved to the kitchen

"You have a problem with this?".

"Where do I begin"

"It's up to you, Crazy person's choice".

"Well, first, we don't have house guests, frankly if I could afford the rent i'd ask you to leave".

"Your friendship meams a lot to me as well". Leonard said sarcastically " What else?".

"Well our earthquake supplies, we have a two-man, two day kit".

"So".

"So if there's an earthquake and the three of us are trapped here we could be out of food by tomorrow afternoon".

Leonard knew where Sheldon was going with this but asked anyway" Are you suggesting that if we let Penny stay we might succumb to cannibalism?".

"No one ever thinks it'll happen until it does".

Turning round to look at Penny and receiving a smile from her " Penny , Sheldon says if you promise not to chew the flesh off our bones while we sleep, he let you stay".

Penny let out a slight chuckle " Ha What?".

It was Sheldon who spoke first " He's engaging in reductio ad absurdum, it's a fallacy of extending someone's argument to ridiculous proportions and then criticising the result. Looking at Leonard " And I don't appreciate it".

"I'll get you a blanket and a pillow". Leonard said with smile. receiving a smile back from Penny, she watched him go over to a door, but was interrupted by Sheldon.

"Okay, since i'm obviously being ignored here, let's go over the morning schedule. I use the bathroom from 7 to 7:20, plan your ablutions and bodily functions accordingly".

Penny thought it was ridiculous thing to ask " How am I supposed to plan my bodily functions?".

"Well I suggest no liquids after 11 p.m".

Leonard had returned by this time with the blanket and pillow" Here you go". turning to look at him giving him a smile " Thanks Leonard". Penny started to prepare her bed for night as she put the pillow down on one side she heard Sheldon speak " Heh wrong", Penny was getting tired of him now, turning back to look at him " I'm listening".

"Your head goes on the other end " with a slight sigh " Why?". Well it's culturally universal a bed even a temporary bed is always with the headboard away from the door. It serves the ancient imperative of protecting oneself against marauders",

The look on Penny's face showed her annoyance at what Sheldon was rambling about " I'll risk it".

Ooh" was Sheldon's response before turning to walk away , Penny decided to ask before he said anything more " Anything else I should know about?".

Sheldon stopped turning back to look at her " Yes if you use my toothbrush i'll jump out that window" pointing to the window before continuing " Please don't come to my funeral, have a good night". and with that he left them.

After watching Sheldon leave Leonard turned to Penny smiling at her " Sorry about that".

"Grinning back at him " That's okay".

"FYI, his toothbrush is the red one in the Plexiglas case under the UV light".

Still grinning slightly Penny nodded her head" Ha got it". turning back to continue making her bed., Leonard watched her for a moment "Well sleep tight" starting to leave but stopping. " Funny expression, sleep tight " laughing nervously he continued " It refers to the early construction of beds which featured a mattress suspended on interlocking ropes , which occasionally". Seeing Penny turn to look at him with a look that showed she wasn't interested in what he was saying, he stopped looking down while fidgeting with his fingers "Sleep tight". when he looked back up smiling at her ,to his relief Penny was grinning at him, turning to make his way to his bedroom but not getting far.

"Leonard".

Stopping Leonard turned to look at her " Yeah".

Penny walked up to him putting her arms around his neck looking into his eyes" Thank you for letting me stay he tonight " Leaning in to kiss him quite passionately. After a moment she broke the kiss " Sleep tight sweetie". Letting go of him and making her way back over to the couch , then for some reason deciding to mover her pillow to the end Sheldon had said it should go too. Getting as comfortable as she could she saw the lights go out indicating Leonard must of waited till she was settled before turning them off. She leaned around turning off the lamp next to the couch and then getting settled and drifted off into a pleasant sleep.

Leonard stood watching her until he was sure she was asleep before retreating to his bed room , getting undressed and climbing into bed , getting comfortable under the covers. His last thought wondering if he will ever get to sleep with Penny in his arms, with a smile on his face he went to sleep dreaming of how it would feel.

 **A/N: Thank you for reading this latest chapter, I hope you enjoyed it, I apologise if it wasn't that great. Anyway please review and let me know what you think.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Thank you to everyone reviewed the previous chapter, they are always appreciated .**

Penny was a sleep although not soundly, when she suddenly woke up confused as to why she merely turned over and tried to get back to sleep unfortunately she couldn't. She also realised this couch wasn't as comfortable as she'd hoped it would be, now wishing she had taken Leonard up on his offer to use his bed instead. Penny finally found a more comfortable position and was drifting back to sleep when she heard something that woke her, sitting up and looking around seeing nothing in the dark. She listened closely to see if she would hear the noise again, after a few minutes of hearing nothing she lay back down again trying to get back to sleep. Unfortunately she wasn't able to get back to sleep as she started to wonder while lying there that the reason she had originally woken up was because of the noise she heard.

After a while having no success in getting back to sleep, Penny got up with a huff realising she wasn't going to get any sleep out here now. She started wonder what to do when she remembered Leonard had offer her his bed sure he meant to herself. But she kind of like the idea of sharing his bed with him. So Penny made her way down the hall to Leonard's room pausing at his door, suddenly wondering if this was a good idea. But she quickly discarded her worry knowing she wasn't going to be able to get back to sleep out there on the couch with it not being that comfortable or that noise she kept hearing. Opening his door slowly she stepped into his room closing the door softly behind her turning to the bed in the dim light from outside she could make out Leonard's sleeping form. All she could think was how adorably cute he looked lying there asleep, she could see how peaceful he looked in his sleep and actually started to feel a bit sorry that she was going to wake him. Sitting down on the edge of his bed , she softly spoke his name " Leonard" getting no response she put her hand on his shoulder shaking him slightly " Leonard".

Leonard slowly started to wake , blinking a few times try his best to understand what was happening "Penny?".

"Yeah hi i was wondering if i can sleep in your bed".

Leonard was till a bit groggy ,wiping his eyes "You want to sleep in my bed?".

"Yes, i can't get comfortable out there and there is this noise i keep hearing and i have no idea where it's coming from".

Leonard yawned whilst nodding his head "Sure you can sleep in my bed " with that started to get out of bed , only for Penny to put her hand on his shoulder to stop him " Where are you going?".

Looking at her confused " To the living room to sleep on the couch".

"Don't be silly your bed is big enough for the both of us lets just share".

Leonard's eyes went wide "You want to sleep with me?".

Penny chuckled "Sure unless it makes you uncomfortable".

Leonard thought about it _While he didn't think it would be uncomfortable for him to share a bed with Penny it did make him nervous , but it still sounded like a good idea'_ he thought " Okay if you're sure".

Grinning at him even though she doubted he could see "Thanks". thinking for a moment " Leonard do you have anything i can wear?".

"Erm my t shirt is over there you can use that if you want , sorry i don't have anything for your bottom half".

"It's fine the t shirt will do" shuffling to end of the bed Penny retrieved Leonard's t shirt , turning to look at Leonard to see him watching her though she doubt very well without his glasses on. "Leonard can you look the other way while i get changed?".

Leonard blushed and quickly looked away even though without his glasses on and the low light he couldn't of seen much anyway "Oh sorry".

Penny smiled even though it was dark she knew he probably was blushing, quickly stripping down to just her panties she put Leonard's t shirt on. Pulling it up to her nose she inhaled the scent he had left on the t shirt making her smile why she didn't know. She made her making her way back to the top of the bed she carefully got under the covers facing towards Leonard's side of the bed. Seeing that he was still facing away from her, she tapped him on the shoulder.

"Leonard sweetie , you can turn around now" Leonard turned back to find himself face to face with Penny so close he didn't need his glasses, she smiled at him before leaning in to kiss his cheek " Thank you for letting me stay here".

"Your welcome Penny".

Still smiling she gave him a soft kiss on his lips "Goodnight Leonard".

"Goodnight Penny". with that they both went to sleep with a feeling of being very comfortable with the other next to them.

* * *

Sheldon got up and did his morning ritual before heading into the living room , to find that his unwanted guest was nowhere to be found , he wondered for a moment if she had left. Deciding to go check if she had gone to join Leonard for coitus he made his way to Leonard's room fighting the urge to knock on he quietly opened the door. To find that she had indeed joined Leonard in bed but as he hadn't heard anything during the night maybe she just wanted somewhere more comfortable to sleep. Closing the door he made his way back to the living room and over to his desk, he spent a few minutes writing out the consequences of Leonard's action then printing them off. He went back to Leonard's door slipping the sheet of paper under it , before walking back and going to the kitchen to get his breakfast. A smile on his face the entire time over what he'd given Leonard _'That'll teach him to bring uninvited guest here again'_ he thought .

* * *

Leonard woke up with smile on his face, Penny had moved in the night and now had her head on his chest and her arm around him plus one of her legs had moved between his. He had been surprised when she came into his room , telling him she had heard a noise and couldn't get back o sleep out there, so had asked him if she could share his bed. Leonard was both excited and nervous about being in the same bed as Penny, hoping his body wouldn't betray him. Luckily it hadn't .

After a while he felt Penny begin to wake up he watched as her eyelids slowly opened to reveal those beautiful green eyes of hers. When she saw he was looking at her she smiled "Morning sweetie".

Smiling back "Morning, did you sleep well?".

Nodding her head " I did , again thank you for letting me stay ".

"You're welcome , but just out of curiosity what made you want to sleep in my bed?, you seemed happy to use the couch".

"I was but i got woke by a noise and just couldn't get back to sleep also your couch isn't that comfortable for sleeping on".

"I did offer you my bed ",

"I know but i didn't want you to give up my bed for me, besides " moving closer to him" Doesn't it feel better to share a bed with someone instead of sleeping alone?".

Leonard blushed, he had very much enjoyed having Penny in bed with him , sure he shared a bed with other women but it just felt different with Penny better even. Nodding " It does " looking at the time " Well i should probably get up". Penny herself off him so he could get out of bed , as he made his way to the door where his robe hung, just as he was putting on his robe, he saw a sheet of paper on the floor. Picking it up he looked at it seeing it was from Sheldon he knew something like this would happen from what happened yesterday but this was too much even for him.

Penny had watched Leonard walk around the bed and towards the door for his robe only wearing a white t shirt and boxers , Penny smiled when she noticed he had a cute tushie. She was disappointed when he covered it up with his robe , when she saw him pick something up from the floor and started reading it , she sat up in bed " Leonard what's that?".

Turning around he came back to the bed and sat down on the edge near Penny ,he let out a sigh" I have to take Sheldon's class again TWICE ".

Penny looked confused "Sheldon has a class , what's that about".

"Well if any of us do something he doesn't like he gives us a strike , if we have three strikes we have to take his class".

"That's stupid, just tell him you're not taking his class".

"I've tried that he made my life a living hell until i agreed to take it".

Shaking her head" And you still live with him ?".

"Yeah i know , he isn't that bad most of the time well some of the well on a few occasions".

"Still if it where me i'd of moved long ago, anyway what are the strikes for?".

" Lets see , Strike 1 - Bringing a uninvited guess into the apartment

"Strike 2- Allowing a non gang member to share our food".

"Strike 3- Not participating in game night instead leaving with the interloper".

"Strike 4-Allowing said interloper to stay in our apartment without 12 hours notice".

"Strike 5- Your interloper was sleeping in my spot".

Penny just looked at Leonard shocked "Are you serious you got 5 strikes all because of me?".

"Yup but don't worry about it".

"It's wrong Leonard , why should he get to say who can visit and who can stay or what you do, it's your apartment too".

"I know but according to the room mate agreement i have no real choice".

Penny looked at him confused " What the heck is a room mate agreement?".

"When i came to look at the apartment i had to pass barriers to even look around the place and i had to sign a room mate agreement to actually move in. I had been looking for ages and this was the best apartment i'd found so i didn't think much of signing the room mate agreement although now i wish i hadn't".

"Well i think your stupid for not only signing that room mate agreement but for putting with the way he treats you".

"What am i supposed to do?".

"I don't know move out and get your own apartment".

"I know, but can we forget about this, do you want to have breakfast here or go out?".

"Fine i'll let it go for now, i'd rather eat out than have to deal with your room mate".

"Okay do you want to take a shower or have my drive you home?".

"Erm i'll just put my clothes back on and you can take me home to have a shower and get changed".

"Okay i'll go take a shower while you get dressed".

Penny watched as Leonard went to drawer and picked out some clean underwear and then a t shirt , he stopped at the door before leaving smiling at her " I won't be long". with that he left. As soon as the door was shut she got out of bed quickly pulling on her jeans, but as she was about to take Leonard's shirt she stopped deciding she wanted to keep it on. She picked up her blouse and bra holding them in her hands and sat patiently waiting for Leonard to come back not wanting to go outside and deal with his crazy room mate.

About twenty minute passed when there was a knock on the door " Penny is it okay to come in?". Penny almost laughed he was asking her if it was okay to come into his own room. "Sure sweetie" the door opened to reveal Leonard now wearing a clean pair of boxers and t shirt with what looked like a picture of both a dog and a cats head. She made his was over to the closet getting a pair of pants to put on after he'd put them on he got a hoodie putting it on as well then a jacket over the top. Nothing about what he was doing was exiting yet Penny couldn't help but watch as he got ready to go out, once done he turned to her "You ready to go?".

Penny got up smiling "Sure am , lets go". with that they both left Leonard's room making there way out the apartment whilst ignoring what Sheldon was saying to them.

* * *

On the drive over to Cheryl's apartment Leonard couldn't help but think of the fact when he got back to his room after having a shower finding Penny had gotten ready but was still wearing his t shirt.

When they got to Cheryl's apartment building , Penny turned to Leonard "Do you want to maybe come and wait in the apartment whilst i get ready?".

"I don't know will Cheryl be there?".

"Probably but don't let that bother you , she'll probably just ask how you are and stuff just be yourself".

Leonard nodded "Okay" .

Smiling at him thanks sweetie okay lets go up" with that they got out of Leonard's car and made there way into the building, whilst in the lift however Penny wondered if it was a good idea after all to have Leonard come up with , she started to worry what Cheryl might asked him or more importantly what she might tell him.

When they got to Cheryl's apartment door Penny took a breath before unlocking the door and entering , she felt a bit of relief when Cheryl was no where to be seen. But that didn't last long when she suddenly came out of her bedroom "Oh morning Penny, and i can see by the way your dressed and with Leonard stood behind you that you spent the night at his , way to go girl".

Penny just scowled "Yes i did spend the night as i was too tired to drive but it was just sleeping nothing else".

Turning to Leonard "Sweetie, i'm just going to take a quick shower and get changed then we can go out and get something to eat, will you be okay out here?".

Leonard nodded " Sure i'll be okay you go get ready".

Smiling at him " Okay " leaning over giving him a peck on the lips " I won't be long " with that she left for her bedroom to get ready. Leonard just stared at where Penny had gone not knowing what to do. Finally turning and seeing Cheryl sat on the couch staring at him with a smile on her face, which made him uncomfortable. Seeing the chair he made his way over to it and sat down avoiding eye contact with Cheryl.

Cheryl had watched the way Leonard was behaving he looked so nervous being here and she kind of felt sorry for him as Penny had essentially left him with someone he didn't really know. A smile crept on her face as she realised she had the perfect opportunity to find out more about him and see what it was about him that had Penny like him so much.

Going for a simple approach "Leonard would you like a drink?".

Leonard turned to her "Sure ".

Getting up and heading to the kitchen "What would like? we have coffee, tea, wine and some juice".

"I'll have juice please".

After pouring him a glass of juice she made her way over to him "Here you go".

Smiling up at her "Thanks" smiling back you're welcome". returning to her seat "So Leonard what do you do for a living?".

Leonard took a sip of his drink before answering " I am a experimental physicist ".

Cheryl just stared at him blankly "A what?".

"A Experimental physicist" seeing the same blank look he tried to explain " I create experiments to determine if other peoples ideas are true".

Cheryl nodded even though she really didn't know what he was on about" So any hobbies?".

Leonard really didn't want to tell her his hobbies , but didn't want to be rude " I like reading and collecting comic books as well as figurines, i like to watch sci-fi fantasy tv shows and movies especially super hero ones. I like to play video games and board games i also play paint ball every Saturday morning with my friends, what about you?".

Cheryl was not at all surprised at the things he did for hobbies as she along with all the other waitresses had thought they where nerds , and what he just told her confirmed it. However she didn't understand someone with such a fascinating job could be caught up in such childish things, and why had Penny fallen for him it just didn't add up for her.

But he had just asked her a question and she needed to answer "Well lets see i like to party watch sports go out watching movies , going to the beach you know normal stuff".

Leonard frowned "Normal stuff?".

Cheryl look wide eyed she hadn't realised how that come across to him " Oh i mean you things that most people do, it wasn't a dig at your hobbies".

"Well it sounded like one, just because i have hobbies that seem odd to you doesn't make them bad".

"I'm sorry you're right people have different hobbies i should make fun of yours".

There was silence between them Cheryl didn't want to say anything in case she said something wrong again plus she was worried about if he would tell Penny about what she said. It was Leonard who spoke next deciding to ask her about what her and her friends had done, turning to look at her "Why did your friends spy on Penny?".

Cheryl looked at him and was stunned he had asked her that question deciding to play it safe "Well we , well I thought you too where just pretending to date because..". trailing off before she said too much.

"Why would you think we would pretend, what possible reason would i have to pretend to date Penny?". Leonard was just as confused now as when Penny told him the same thing.

Cheryl was stuck what does she tell him, deciding she will tell him a mostly truth " Well you have understand i've known Penny since middle school and not being rude you're not the kind of guy she normally dates".

Sighing " I guess you're right but that doesn't mean that Penny can't change, but out of curiosity what where the guys like that Penny dated?".

Cheryl looked Leonard in the eye" Are you sure you want to know?" Leonard nodded "Well okay, Penny has always had a type and not being rude you are not it. She always dated the guys that where popular and athletic with great hair usually football players some baseball players a wrestler a few who went the gym and they where all taller than her. They also all had something in common they where all bad boys", she decided not to tell him that guys like him Penny used to pick in high school " I'm sorry Leonard".

Leonard looked dejected at hearing the kind of guys Penny usually dated which made him wonder why she had been dating someone like him instead of her normal type, was it out of pity?.

* * *

Penny had rushed having a shower and getting ready she didn't want to leave Leonard with Cheryl too long in case something was revealed she didn't want him to know. Just as she was about to leave she stopped and picked up Leonard's t shirt bringing up to her nose to inhale his scent,which now was a mixture of her own. She thought about giving it back but decided she was going to keep it until he asked for it back until he did she was going to to use it as a sleep shirt , she smiled thinking of herself going to bed in his t shirt. So putting back down she left the bedroom all ready to go but she knew instantly something as up Leonard looked so sad and Cheryl was avoiding looking at her.

"Sweetie you ready to go". without even looking up he nodded and made his way to the door Penny watched him then turned with a scowl on her face at Cheryl who was still avoiding looking at her. She quickly followed Leonard out the apartment and found him waiting by the lift for her "Leonard are you okay? without looking at her again "I'm fine". Penny now knew something was terribly wrong and she had a feeling it as something that Cheryl had told him, for moment she panicked wondering if Cheryl had told him about the bet.

Leonard was just lost in his thoughts trying to work out why a woman as beautiful as Penny would be with him when she could have much better guys than him. Why had she agreed to go out with someone who was clearly not her type physically, he really didn't know and wasn't sure he wanted too.

They made it to the lobby by now Penny couldn't take it any more "Okay Leonard what's going on, you've been acting strange since i came out of the bedroom did Cheryl say something to you that upset you?".

Leonard finally looked at her "Sort of she just told me some things about you that.. you know what it doesn't matter". with that he made his way out of the building to his car. Penny quickly following him finally catching up with she grabbed his arm turning him to face her "No Leonard i want to know what she told you that making you act this way?".

Looking at her he could see nothing but concern in her eyes maybe even a bit of fear" Okay i'll tell you but not here lets go and get something to eat and i'll promise i tell you then".

"Okay but you better tell me i don't want any secrets between us" inwardly cringing when she remember that there was a a huge secret between them, Leonard nodded "Okay". Both got into his car the journey to the cafe was quiet both lost in there thoughts Leonard still overthinking what Cheryl had told him and Penny wondering what was bothering him so much.

They arrived a cute little cafe not to far from her now favourite restaurant , Penny now wishing she had her bikini so she could do abit of sunbathing after the meal. Getting out of the car together Penny not giving Leonard a chance to do what he normally would , as they met Penny grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. This made Leonard look at her she smiled sweetly at him and was happy when he smiled back, they made there way inside sitting down by the window waiting to be served.

They both ordered there meals and a drink , when the waitress left Leonard looked out the window towards the beach seeing all the people on it noticing quite a lot of guys who where much taller than him and way better physiques this got Leonard back to thinking about the type of guys Penny used to date the guys on the beach where probably just like the guys she dated. It again made him wonder why she was with him when she could be with someone like them he also remembered what Penny had said to him the first time they went to the beach, seeing all these young buff guys maybe she was right about him not fitting in. Then there was the club every guy who hit on her was also taller and more built than he was sure Penny had turned them all down but it didn't go unnoticed that no guy like him hit on her. Although she had told everyone one of them he was her boyfriend , but even that thought didn't make him feel any better, he knew he was just being ridiculous. He just didn't know why knowing the kind of guys she usually dated made him so insecure, especially since she was now dating him and seemed to be happy about too.

Penny watched Leonard looking out the window towards the beach , she didn't like the look on his face he look so dejected she really needed to find out what was wrong "Sweetie are you going to tell what's wrong like you promised".

Leonard was brought out of his train of thought by Penny saying something , turning to look at her he nodded , _'Maybe telling Penny what he was thinking will ease his feeling of inadequacy '_ he thought.

" I was talking to Cheryl about you".

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you for taking the time to read this chapter i hope it was okay, i am sorry if you didn't like the second half of it. It was just that for some reason i thought Leonard needed to know the kind of guys Penny used to date. Then i thought Cheryl would be perfect person to let it slip about the kind of guys Penny used to date. Also given how Leonard was in the beginning of the show which is the time this story is set i thought it would make him insecure and have him over think why she was with him.**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed the previous chapter they where very much appreciated.**

 **A/N2: I am so sorry for how long it has been since i posted a chapter for this story , i didn't realise until the other day that it has been 7 months since the last chapter. I'm still not sure where to go with this , but i've wrote a chapter to give you something however i don't think it's that good so i apologise in advance if you don't like it .**

* * *

"I was talking to Cheryl about you".

Penny just stared at Leonard for a moment not knowing what to say , then in a very shaky voice "What did she say about me?".

Sighing "She just told me that she had known you since middle school,and had seen every guy you have ever dated and then went on to describe them when i asked what they where like. I was stunned at the type of guys she described and in all honesty it made me question why someone who dates those kind of guys would want to date me. She also pointed out that was why they where spying on us during our date, because i am not the type of guy you normally date , so after hearing about the types of guys you date normally it got to me".

Penny could feel her anger building " _that bitch"_ she thought what right does she have to tell Leonard about any of that, looking at Leonard "Sweetie that was Highschool".

Leonard frowned "What do you mean by that?".

Sighing "Well i was always popular at school from the day i started, so it was only natural that when i started dating that i would date the popular guys which so happen to be the ones into sports ".

Leonard just stared at her "Oh"

Penny felt awful she had a good idea what Leonard thought she was like at school and he'd be right, but she hoped that she could get him to understand that she's not that girl anymore.

"Leonard you have to understand i was a cheerleader so me dating the guys who where into sports was sort of expected of me and i probably would of been kicked off if i... "Penny trailed off.

Leonard frowned again "If what ? you dated someone who wasn't into sports or popular and maybe smart and and nerd instead?".

Penny shook her head "Leonard at school i just went with what my friends wanted to do which was dating partying and other stuff".

Leonard gave her a questioning look "What other stuff? like having sex all the time?".

Penny looked at hi sypathetically "Sweetie why is this bothering you so much? it shouldn't matter because i'm with younow because i want to be".

Leonard just sighed "It just reminds me of when i was at school and getting picked on by the popular kids and watching all the cheerleaders dating all the popular guys who where into sports. You're past makes you who you are that can't be changed".

It was Penny's turn to frown "What are you saying that just because i was popular at school and hung around and dated the popular guys that i will always want to be with that type?. You'd be wrong Leonard sure i liked dating tall muscular guys but they where all jerks even Kurt who i lived with for four years was a jerk but i thought i was in love with him. However dating you has opened my eyes seeing what it's like to date someone who is kind and honest and really cares about me and will do things i want to do. No Leonard i'll never want to be with those kind of guys ever again in fact if i'd known what being with a guy like you would be like i would of probably never of dated the jerks that i did".

Leonard raised his eyebrows" Really ? you do realise that if you had of dated someone like me you wouldn't of been popular anymore , would you reallywant give that up?".

Smiling Penny took hold of Leonard's hand " If it had been you then yes i would of given it up for you".

Smiling at her "thanks but i seriously doubt you would of" Penny was about to protest "Would you really of wanted to lose all your friends probably be kicked out of the cheerleading squad and not getting invited to parties".

As Pennythought about she realised he was right , she sighed "I guess you're right, but that was high school after that i would of happily dated someone like you if i wasn't with Kurt, besides i found you really cute from the moment we met". grinning at him.

This got Leonard grinning too "Really?".

Nodding "Yeah i was actually dropping hints all the time you where there for you to ask me out".

Leonard got a contemplative look "Huh i guess Howard was right".

Penny got nervous for a moment wondering what Howard had told him but then relaxed , because if Leonard had known anything about what she told Howard he would of said so. Wanting to change the subject she wonder if Cheryl had said anything else "What else did she say ?".

"Not much just how long she's known you and what you like to do ".

"Oh okay, so are we okay?" Penny looked at Leonard she felt sorry for him, he probably had a terrible time at school being bullied just because he was smart and nerdy. But it broke her heart when she thoughtabout it , because she realised if they had gone to the same school she would of probably bullied him too.

Smiling at her weakly "Sure".

Penny gave him a suspicious look she had a feeling this wasn't over one thing she did know was there was no way she was going to tell him about the bet until he was more secure in their relationship.

* * *

After having a wonderful breakfast they came out of the cafe Penny couldn't help but stare at the beach it was a lovely day and she so wanted to be out there now. Leonard saw Penny looking at the beach looking like she clearly wanted to be there , Leonard still hated the beach but wasn't scared of it like he used to be However all those large muscular guys on the beach kept him thinking of Penny's exes and that he didn't like but he decided to try ignore that insecurity. Taking one last look at the beach before turning to Penny " Penny do you maybe want to go and take a walk along the beach?".

Penny was happyhe had made the suggestion , because she really did want to beon the beach , however she wasn't dressed for the beach.

"Sweetie i would love too , but don't you think we should maybe find something more appropriate to wear?".

Realising his mistake "You're right , do you want me to take you home so you can get changed?".

Smiling at him "Actually i was thinking maybe we could go shopping so we can maybe get you something more fitting for the beach too and i'll can get a new bikini maybe you can come with me while i try them on".

Leonard looked at her surprised "You want me to watch you try on bikini's?".

Penny smiled at Leonard's response , when she suggested this with Kurt he only agreed if he got to be in the changing room with her and sometimes she'd let him however if she refused he would say no.

"Yeah why not "Seeing the look on his face she put her arm around him "Awe are you scared?".

Leonard tried to sound confident "No i'm not".

Penny just smiled "So can we go shopping?".

Leonard didn't want to but he could see Penny really wanted "Sure lets go"

* * *

They drove to the nearest mall and after parking up they got out of Leonard's car and made there way into the mall Penny took Leonard's hand intertwining their fingers. Penny took Leonard to get some shorts to wear on the beach first , Leonard wasn't happy that they didn't have any super heroes on them and all Penny could do was roll her eyes but smiled anyway.

Eventually Penny had dragged Leonard into a women's clothes shop so she could find a bikini to wear on the beach she didn't really need one her motive was to give Leonard a fashion show watching his reaction to all the different bikinis shewould try on.

Leonard nervously followed her well technically she was dragging him by the hand finally she stopped turning to look at him "Sweetie sit here i'll just go and find somethings to try on".

Leonard just nodded and sat down in the seats near the changing rooms feeling completely out of place not knowing were to look he opted to just look at the floor.

Penny returned with her selection of outfits smiling at the sight of him staring at the floor "Leonard ".

Leonard looked up to see Penny smiling at him "Yeah".

"I'm just going to try these on can you tell what you think of them?".

Leonard had no idea Penny was planning on doing this he though couldn't deny that Penny putting on a fashion show was something he wouldn't mind seeing. Although he suspected he might need his inhaler , Leonard nodded "Sure but i don't think i'm the best judge of fashion ".

Smiling at him "Leonard all you have to do is tell me if i look good in them not tell me what your opinion of them".

Leonard was still nervous worriying she might give him a asthma attack depending on what she came out in".

Nodding "Okay i think i can do that ".

Penny grinned "Great , you just wait right there whilst i try each of these on so you can get a look and tell me what you think". Leonard nodded again , Penny then turned and made her way over to the changing room. She was glad he had agreed , even though she could see he was nervous , well hopefully he will enjoy her little fashion show for him. She was looking forward to seeing the look on jis face when he saw he in each out fit , she placed them all down sorting through them from the deciding which to wear first. She already knew which one was going to be last so she put that one to the side for now, quickly getting undressed and putting on the first one.

Penny adjusted it so it was comfortable , then took a breath before stepping out to show Leonard what it looked like , the expression on Leonard's face was priceless.

Leonard didn't know what to say but just continued to stare Penny was wearing a one piece bathing suit that cut really high at the hip and was quite low cut at the front .

Penny really wanted to know what he thought "Well what do you think?".

Blinking a couples of times before he spoke "You look really nice ".

Smiling "Thank you , although io don't think this is good for the beach , i'll try another one on" turning to go back in the changing room Penny was happy with Leonard's reaction. now she couldn't wait to see how he reacted to the next one.

Penny stepped out again this time in a two piece bikini in a light pink he thought it looked amazing on her it definitely suited he figure he thought she didn't need to try any more on this was the one to get.

Penny was again happy with the way Leonard was looking at her "So what do you think ?".

Leonard looked up at her and smiled "You look perfect".

Penny blushed "Well thank you", i really like this one but i want to try a few more if that's okay ?".

Leonard nodded "Sure but i think this is the one you should get".

"Well lets wait until you've seen the others first okay". getting a nod from Leonard Penny went into the changing putting on the next one to show him Penny continued this with a few more . Getting a compliment each time from Leonard they where pretty much all the same just different colours and patterns , after showing the last one in black . She got a little nervous at the thought of the last one she was going to put on , she had picked it to tease him because there was no way she would buy a bikini like this. But when she had imagined what the look on his face would be like she decided to pick it up to show him. However now she looking down at it she wasn't so sure anymore not because she didn't want see his reaction but because she really didn't want anyone else seeing her in it. But she still really wanted to see Leonard face when she showed it to him, it was then she had a idea , poking her head out to look at Leonard.

"Sweetie could you do me favour?"

Leonard got up and nodded"Sure what do you need?".

"I was wondering if you can go and pick me up a bathrobe".

Leonard looked confused at that request "Sure but why?".

Grinning at him "You'll see".

"Okay what kind do you want?".

Penny just shrugged "Any will do"

Still slightly confused by the request Leonard went off in search of a robe for Penny , when he got there he felt uncomfortable looking at them surrounded by other women. But he persevered and decided he would find a nice robe for her it took him a few minutes but eventually he found a nice one it was pink like her bikini and had the word sexy printed on the lower back part,.

Leonard smiled at the thought of what Penny would look like in the robe as he made his way back, once outside the changing room he called to her "Penny ?".

Penny popped her head round seeing he had a robe, smiling as she took it from him "Thanks sweetie" looking down at the robe she grinned "Nice choice".

Leonard grinned back " I thought you'd like it".

"Well go and take a seat i won't be long " Leonard nodded and returned to his seat waiting to see what she looks like. Penny put on her last bikini looking herself over in the mirror. She couldn't believe that any woman would wear this to the beach she felt exposed just being here in the changing room by herself. Putting on the robe Leonard had brought she smiled it was definitely a nice robe maybe she'll get this too. taking one last breath before stepping out to show Leonard.

When Penny came out Leonard couldn't stop the smile the robe was definitely right for her, but his smile faded when he saw the nervous look on her face " Penny are you okay?".

Penny nodded "Yeah it's just that i thought this was a good idea but now i'm not so sure".

Leonard gave her a sympathetic look "Well you don't have to show me this one if you don't want too, you can just go and get changed, then we can buy the one you like the most".

Surprisingly what Leonard said and the way he was looking at her gave her a bit more confidence "No it's okay i can do this " looking around to see if there was anyone around. When she saw no one she opened the robe to reveal what she was wearing .

When Penny opened her robe Leonard's eyes bulged out , he couldn't believe what she was wearing , he wasn't even sure if it counted as a bikini there was so little of it. Just a few very small piees of materiall covering up what it needed to. Leonard heart rate shot up and his breathing became irractic , he felt his chest getting tighter and finding it harder to breath. Knowing he was having a asthma attack to dug around in his pocket trying to locate it finally finding putting it in his mouth nd taking to quick puffs of thr medication.

Penny saw Leonard's reaction and even though she felt exposed she smiled that she could have that effect on him, but her smile soon dropped when she saaw Leonard struggling to breath. Making her way over to Leonard Peny knelt in front of him and started stroking his arm " Sweetie are you okay?".

Leonard just nodded waiting to get his breathing a little bit back to normal " I'm okay " came out in a sqeak" taking another moment " That.. that outfit is just wow .. but i don't think it's good for the beach".

Penny smiled " I know i was never going to buy it i just wanted to show you it that's all".

"Well i will never need to see it you in that again , as i doubt i'll ever forget seeing you in it",

This made Penny blush " I'm glad it made a impression on you , but i think i'll go get dressed and just but the pink one okay?".

Leonard nodded " Okay".

Penny stood up and made her way back to the changing , happy at the reaction she got although the asthma attack worried her , as she approached the changing room . She stopped taking a quick look around seeing no one near and that Leonard was still watching her she smirked and turn back towards the changing room. The just before entering dropped the robe on the floor givig Leonard a great view of her butt .

Leonard almost had another asthma attack when she dropped her robe, shaking his head he couldn't believe he was dating a woman like her she was so sexy. But he had seen beyond the physical with her she was such a great woman so warm and friendly and so far had seemed to really like him even though he couldn't figure out why.

Getting up to pick the robe up off the floor, he hoped that they could be together forever,frowning at that thought was it too soon to be thinking of a spending the rest of his life with her? absolutely but he couldn't helped believing she was the one for him.

* * *

 **A/N: Well there you have it, i hope it was okay, let me know in your reviews :).**


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